A man armed with a butcher knife tried to stab two Bronx bodega workers in an unprovoked attack, shocking video shows.
Tyrell Mata, 29, was later arrested and charged with felony assault, menacing and weapons possession.
Surveillance video shows two workers behind the counter at 3J’s Deli Grocery on Anderson Ave. near W. 167th St. in Highbridge when the attacker walks in at about 7:30 p.m. Monday.
“He comes here all the time provoking incidents. Sometimes he smokes a joint outside and blows the smoke into the bodega. He’s a terror, a wild pit bull,” said Fernando Mateo, spokesman for United Bodegas of America, in front of the deli at a press conference Tuesday afternoon.
The assailant tried to open a plexiglass door to get at the workers. Unable to get the door open, he moved toward the counter and tried to take advantage of the window’s open space, four times taking a swipe with the knife at the second worker, who was far enough back behind the counter to avoid being stabbed.
Seconds later he made two jabbing motions with his knife over the top of the partition. One of the workers, now armed with a bat, then started to give chase as the attacker gave up and fled the store.
Police said one of the workers said Mata, who lives around the corner from the store, often shows up and causes trouble.
Read more on NYDAILYNEWS