A crime of opportunity had fatal consequences for a Queens cab driver Saturday night. Yaosse Agbokou, 50, was two blocks from his St. Alban's home when he spotted a Nissan Altima idling unattended around 10:00 p.m. The Togolese immigrant apparently decided to hop behind the wheel and drive away, but he hadn't counted on two things: the vehicle was stuck in the snow, and the driver—6'3'', 240 pound ex-marine Daillard Paris—was inside his nearby home, taking a quick break from shoveling out the car.
When Paris emerged, he saw Agbokou futilely attempting to drive away as the Altima's wheels spun in the snow. NYPD spokesman Paul Browne says Paris, 28, pulled Agbokou from the car, punched him and put him in a headlock. Paris's mother called 911, but by the time police arrived, Agbokou was "was alive but semiconscious." The tabloids report that he was briefly arrested but "became disoriented" and lost consciousness. (The NYPD later denied arresting him.) Agbokou was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead of "compression of the neck." His cousin tells the Times he "had blood all over his face and was missing a tooth, and it appeared that his jaw had been broken," and claims cops joined Paris in fatally beating his cousin.
But Paris's mother tells the Daily News that Agbokou was "fighting and biting him. He was in really bad shape. He was crying for help. It was either Daillard or the [other] guy." Paris, who was recently hired as a financial analyst, planned to sell the Altima to a childhood friend. The death was ruled a homicide, and it's unclear if the Queens DA will file charges against Paris. One of Agbokou's friends, Bernard Fort, tells the Post, "That's crazy. This is totally unacceptable. It's totally shocking."
