Marine veteran Daniel Penny accused in NYC subway chokehold death surrenders

Marine veteran Daniel Penny turned himself into police Friday in Lower Manhattan to face a manslaughter charge for fatally choking an erratic homeless man on the New York City subway.

Penny arrived in a black Cadillac Escalade, stepped out wearing a dark-colored suit and was trailed by attorney Thomas Kenniff.

Fox News senior correspondent Laura Ingle asked Penny if he had any comment on the charges as he entered the 5th Precinct a little after 8 a.m., but he did not answer.

Meanwhile, a witness who was on the subway when Penny put Jordan Neely, 30, in a chokehold May 1, told the New York Post she “was praying for him.”

NYC MAYOR ERIC ADAMS SAYS ‘JORDAN NEELY DID NOT DESERVE TO DIE’

The 66-year-old woman said Neely was “threatening the passengers” during the altercation on the northbound F train.

“He said, ‘I don’t care. I’ll take a bullet, I’ll go to jail’ because he would kill people on the train,” the woman said of Neely. “He said, ‘I would kill a motherf—er. I don’t care. I’ll take a bullet. I’ll go to jail.’”

MARINE VETERAN IN NYC SUBWAY CHOKEHOLD DEATH FACES TOUGH LEGAL ROAD, EXPERTS SAY

Penny, a 24-year-old college student, didn’t step in until Neely’s behavior got out of hand. The retiree said she thanked the young man afterward.

The veteran, who is one week shy of graduating from college, was transported from the precinct Friday to Manhattan Criminal Court. He’s expected to be arraigned on one count of second-degree manslaughter. 

A source told Fox News Digital that prosecutors are expected to ask for a $100,000 bail package.

According to a freelance journalist who recorded the confrontation, Neely, who suffered from mental illness, was allegedly acting aggressively and screaming at passengers in the subway car.

“He started screaming in an aggressive manner,” freelance journalist Alberto Vazquez told The New York Post. “He said he had no food, he had no drink, that he was tired and doesn’t care if he goes to jail. He started screaming all these things, took off his jacket, a black jacket that he had, and threw it on the ground.”

JORDAN NEELY HAD HISTORY OF ATTACKS ON SUBWAY RIDERS BEFORE NYC CHOKEHOLD DEATH

The city’s medical examiner ruled the killing a homicide caused by compression of the neck.

Penny dragged Neely to the ground from behind and held him in a chokehold, as he appeared to gradually lose consciousness, according to Vazquez and the footage.

Penny’s attorney said he acted in self-defense to protect himself and other New Yorkers. If convicted of the charge, Neely could face up to 15 years in prison. 

JORDAN NEELY’S FAMILY BLASTS MARINE VET’S LACK OF REMORSE AFTER NYC SUBWAY CHOKEHOLD DEATH

Mayor Eric Adams said at a press conference Thursday that “Jordan Neely did not deserve to die.”

The caught-on-video killing has highlighted grave public safety issues in the city’s subways and sparked widespread protests.

Outreach workers were so familiar with Neely that he was on the city’s “Top 50” list – an internal roster kept by the Department of Homeless Services of people most in need of help, the New York Post reported.

911 TIMELINE MOMENTS BEFORE MARINE VET PUT JORDAN NEELY IN CHOKEHOLD ON NYC SUBWAY

Neely had a history of violent attacks on subway riders – including, in 2021, punching a 67-year-old woman in the face, breaking her nose and orbital bone.

Four months earlier, he allegedly slugged another woman in the face on the subway platform, court records show. 

In 2019, he allegedly sucker-punched two men in the face on different subway platforms one month apart, breaking one victim’s nose, the records reveal.

The man had more than three dozen arrests – including for exposing himself to a woman on a subway platform in 2021 and harassing a subway rider in 2020.