Michelle Go Case: Homeless man charged in Times Square subway killing
NEW YORK - A homeless man now faces second-degree murder charges in the subway pushing death of Michelle Alyssa Go. Simon Martial, 61, was arraigned on Wednesday morning.
The Upper West Side woman was killed when she was pushed into an oncoming subway train in a Times Square station on Saturday. The incident happened just after 9:30 a.m. on the southbound N/Q/W/R platform in the 42nd Street and Broadway subway station.
The Manhattan District Attorney's office says that Martial pushed her onto the train tracks as a train approached the station. Go was hit by the train and died.
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The NYPD says that Martial, who is homeless, attempted to push another woman onto the tracks before approaching Go.
He screamed," I am God," as police led him out of the Midtown Precinct South after his arrest.
Prosecutors say that Martial admitted his guilt in three separate conversations with transit officers, detectives, and prosecutors.
Martial has two prior violent felony convictions. One was for attempted robbery in 1999 and another for attempted robbery in 2019.
He currently has a warrant out for violating his parole. The judge ordered him held without bail.
Martial is being represented by Mitchell Schuman of the public defender's office. He is due back in court on Feb. 23.
Michelle Alyssa Go was remembered in vigils in New York and San Francisco on Tuesday evening. A separate vigil was held in San Francisco. Dozens of people gathered in Portsmouth Square, which is known as the heart of San Francisco's Chinatown.
Michelle Go, 40, was from Fremont, California. She attended the University of California in Los Angeles as an undergraduate, graduated from New York University’s Stern School of Business, and worked as a Senior Manager of mergers and acquisitions for Deloitte Consulting.
She also spent years as an active volunteer for the New York Junior League, helping at-risk community members including the homeless.
Go's family released a statement saying: "We are in a state of shock and grieving the loss of our daughter, sister, and friend. We hope Michelle will be remembered for how she lived and not just how she died. She was a beautiful, brilliant, kind, and intelligent woman who loved her family and friends, loved to travel the world and to help others. Her life was taken too soon in a senseless act of violence, and we pray that she gets the justice she deserves. Thank you for your condolences."