A 54-year-old New York cab driver and father-of-five, Prince Ezenekwe narrowly escaped death when an armed passenger attempted to rob him at gunpoint. Fortunately, his quick thinking and reactions saved his life as he stepped on the gas, meaning that the bullet shot by the suspect only grazed his cheek.
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According to the New York Post, the incident took place early Monday morning, at around 1:30 a.m. "This is a miracle," a moved Ezenekwe said during a press conference later in the day. "I am not supposed to be alive. It was so scary. I have seen this kind of thing in the movies, but I haven't seen it up close."
Ezenekwe would be right, of course. It was a miracle most definitely scary. Earlier that day, he picked up a passenger in Canarsie, Brooklyn. The passenger was wearing a ski mask. Moments after starting the trip, the passenger asked Ezenekwe to return to where he had picked him up, saying that he had forgotten something.
Given the fact that Ezenekwe was driving down a one-way street, he asked the passenger to walk back and get his forgotten belongings. The passenger, however, became enraged and started insulting Ezenekwe. He didn't pay too much attention to the insults, but everything changed when the passenger threatened his life, according to him.
"I didn't pay him no mind until he said, 'Don't let me kill you here,'" Ezenekwe continued. "Then he opened the car, stepped out of the car, the door was still open, and he said again 'I will have to kill you,' 'give me everything you have.'"
A Miracle
In a matter of seconds, or even shorter than that, Prince Ezenekwe decided to take a risk. He decided to step on his vehicle's gas. At the same time, the suspect fired his gun.
"He fired the gun once, but the car moved so fast. Because the car shifted, my head also shifted, so he missed the target," Ezenekwe said.
Instead of hitting his head and most likely taking his life, the bullet instead grazed his right cheek. As per the Post, sources reveal that the bullet almost hit a critical artery. Ezenekwe then drove himself to Brookdale Universtiy Hopsital Medical Center, where he was treated and then released. He now calls himself the "luckiest man alive" and says that he can't complain.
The passenger who allegedly threatened Ezenekwe's life and took a shot at him has not been caught at the moment.
During the same conference where Prince Ezenekwe shared details about the incident, Fernando Mateo, a New York State Federation of Taxi Drivers, spoke his mind. As per the Post, Mateo recommended taxi drivers not to drive masked individuals despite the risks that that negative could pose for their jobs.
"The TLC tells the drivers 'you've got to pick them up, otherwise it may be discrimination,'" Mateo said. "You know what? Let it be discrimination if it's going to save your life."
Similarly, Steven Rivera, president of the federation, said that "enough is enough." "No taxi or livery driver should be hunted down like prey while simply doing their job. This is attempted murder," Rivera said.
