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Allegedly Stabby Banker Avoids Hate Crime Charges Because Cabbie Kept Knife
By
John Del Signore
Published Oct 15, 2012
Modified Oct 15, 2012
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By
John Del Signore
Published Oct 15, 2012
Modified Oct 15, 2012
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W. Bryan Jennings, a former Morgan Stanley executive who was charged with a hate crime after stabbing a cabbie in a dispute over a fare in March, is off the hook, and now we know why. In a weird twist, prosecutors dropped the case against Jennings because the knife he allegedly used to stab the driver was found to be in the cabbie's possession—five months after the incident. Jennings was accused of drunkenly stabbing the hack after a 40-mile trip from NYC to Connecticut, during which he allegedly screamed," You should go back to your own f--king country...I’m gonna kill you, motherf--ker!"
The driver, Mohamed Ammar, “had the knife the whole time,” supervisory assistant state’s attorney Steven Weiss tells the Post. “He had ample opportunity to tell police and he didn’t do that. He withheld evidence for five full months." Weiss also said that Ammar's explanation for why he was holding onto the knife "made no sense," but the attorney would not elaborate. "I simply can’t go forward when I have a witness who didn’t cooperate with police," Weiss added.
At the time of the alleged assault, Jennings was Morgan Stanley’s co-head of U.S. bond underwriting. The Wall Street Journal reports that he is no longer with the company. "arrest warrant contained false statements and omissions that 'seriously undermine' Ammar’s credibility." Jennings told reporters outside the courtroom, "The outcome of the case, I think, speaks for itself." Really? Because we're completely baffled.
Tagged
connecticut
hate crime
taxi
williams bryan jennings
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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