A Roosevelt man is facing murder charges in connection with the death of a Freeport man who was killed after he fell off a Long Island Rail Road station platform and onto the third rail early Saturday morning, authorities said.
Niheim Levy, 34, was arrested Saturday and charged with murder and first-degree robbery.
The death of the 49-year-old man was originally attributed to him falling on the electrified third rail in Bellmore after suffering a seizure. But a joint investigation by MTA police and Nassau County police later revealed that the victim fell after a verbal altercation turned physical, police said.
Authorities did not say what sparked the altercation, which occurred just before 5 a.m., police said.
The MTA said the initial call to 911 reported that a man had fallen onto the track “after possibly suffering a seizure.”
Police are withholding the identity of the victim pending family notification, the MTA said.
“This is a great example of the outstanding working relationship the two agencies share which led to the expeditious arrest of a Homicide Suspect,” Inspector Joseph Martelli, commanding officer of the MTA police Detective Division, said in a statement.
Both Nassau police and MTA police are continuing the investigation.
