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Family Attacks Dead Woman's Beau for Calling 911 Too Late, Sources Say

 Deborah Greenidge.
Deborah Greenidge.
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QUEENS - The day after a Laurelton woman died of a heart attack earlier this month, her relatives kidnapped and nearly killed her boyfriend because they believed he had been too slow to summon help, according to sources and court records.

Deborah Greenidge, 59, complained of chest pains and difficulty breathing on May 4, sources said.

Her boyfriend, Jean-Patrick Gay, 35, initially thought her symptoms would pass. But, during the next 20 minutes, Greenidge's condition worsened, prompting Gay to call 911 at roughly 3 p.m., sending paramedics racing to the couple's home at 141st Avenue and 219th Street.

After working on her for 40 minutes, paramedics took Greenidge to Franklin Hospital in Valley Stream, where she was pronounced dead.

Authorities determined a heart attack had killed her, sources said.

That explanation, however, didn't satisfy Greenidge's son, brother, nephew and other relatives, who allegedly converged on the couple's home at 9:30 a.m. the next morning, upset that Gay hadn't called 911 sooner.

Gay told cops one of the relatives put a knife to his throat and forced him outside the house he and Greenidge had shared for years.

As many as seven relatives surrounded him — Darcy Greenidge, 56, the dead woman's brother; Damon Lynch, 28, her son; Steven Greenidge, 28, her nephew; Shalana Greenidge, 23, a niece; and three others who have not been identified, according to court records and law enforcement sources.

The group punched Gay in the face, head and body, then forced him into the front passenger seat of a car, which several Greenidges piled into as well, according to a criminal complaint.

When the car stopped at the intersection of 121st Avenue and Springfield Boulevard, Gay managed to open the door and jump out, but not before he was stabbed at least once in the neck, according to the complaint.

As Gay tried to escape, the driver of the car hit the gas and slammed into Gay, knocking him to the ground, and the Greenidges quickly surrounded him again.

Steven and Darcy Greenidge then stabbed him several times in the neck, court records claim.

Someone called 911 and arriving cops from the 105th Precinct put an end to the assault, sources said.

Paramedics took Gay to the hospital, where he was treated for "four stab wounds to the neck, a broken pelvis, a dislocated shoulder with a broken socket bone, a broken collar bone and a fractured jaw and lacerations and bruising about the body," the criminal complaint said.

Gay remained hospitalized as of last week.

Steven and Darcy Greenidge were both charged with attempted murder, kidnapping, assault and weapons possession. Both were released on bail of $50,000 and $10,000 respectively.

Steven Greenidge claimed that Gay had stabbed him first.

Lynch, who faces attempted murder and kidnapping charges, remains on Rikers Island in lieu of $150,000 bail.

Shalana Greenidge was charged with stealing Gay's house keys and was released without bail.

Cops were still working to identify other members of the family who were allegedly involved in the grief-fueled attack. Charles Keaton, the lawyer who represents Darcy Greenidge, said only that the Greenidges "were good, strong, middle-class people."

Steven Greenidge's lawyer, Eugene Levy, did not immediately return a call seeking comment.

Authorities said there were no prior disputes between Gay and the other Greenidges before Deborah died, although her son Damon Lynch recently lived with her mother and may have been asked to leave.