A New York City landlord was released from jail on Monday, while his half-brother was held on bail, after the two allegedly beat a tenant to death with a baseball bat over unpaid rent, prosecutors said.
The landlord, Omar Lamoni, 43, was let go on his own recognisance with supervised release, even though the Bronx District Attorney’s Office wanted him to be held on $100,000 cash bail or $300,000 bond.
The 39-year-old half-brother of Lamoni was told to pay $10,000 in cash bail or $20,000 in bond and stay in jail.
Three brothers beat up Kristopher Samaroo, 30, outside of his small brick home on the Throgs Neck Motorway on Saturday night. Samaroo died in the fight. Nina then showed up with a steel baseball bat, which he is said to have killed Samaroo with.
Bride-to-be Brittney Shears told News 12 that the landlord’s brother “goes straight to the trunk of his car, grabs a steel bat, runs up my steps to the front of my house, and starts wailing on my husband.”
“My husband then jumps on him.” They hit the ground here and fall.
After that, Lamoni joined the fight, she told the news source.
Shears said, “They keep saying that we are not paying rent right now, but that could not be further from the truth.” “Because they keep turning off my hot water, the landlord will take part payment for rent.”
Sources say Samaroo got back inside after being hit hard while Shears called 911.
A spokesperson for the NYPD said that when police arrived, they found Samaroo with “trauma around the body.”
He was taken to Jacobi Hospital right away, but he died on the way there.
Police say that both brothers were charged with second-degree assault. Lamoni was also charged with putting a child in danger because the child was nearby during the attack. It is not clear what the child had to do with the men.
The investigation is still going on.