BUSHWICK — A bodega worker frustrated by a drunk pulled a machete from behind the counter and slashed the man on his neck, according to officials.
A police officer happened to be outside Mely Food at 440 Evergreen Ave., Bushwick, at 9:43 p.m. Feb. 25 and witnessed the worker holding a machete and the 39-year-old victim clutching his neck, according to a law enforcement official.
The injured man was rushed to the hospital and treated, said fire officials.
Mely Food employee Jose Martinez, 55, was arrested at the scene and charged with assault and possession of a knife longer than 4 inches, prosecutors said.
The victim later declined to cooperate with prosecutors, a law enforcement source said.
"I've known the guy for almost 20 years," said Martinez, who was working at the bodega on Monday and said that the machete wasn't his.
He'd never known the victim to act belligerently before Feb. 25 but that night, he was making a mess in the bodega and refused to leave, he said.
"He knocked down the whole rack," Martinez said, pointing to a shelf of snacks by the door. "He popped a bottle."
Martinez was released without bail and is due back in court on May 17.
