Immigrant arrested in bludgeoning death of NYU professor claims self-defense
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A Brooklyn man accused of murdering a 66-year-old professor after a war of words over immigration is claiming self-defense, his attorney said Friday.
Through attorney Jay Schwitzman, Mirzo Atadzhanov, 28, of Brooklyn, entered a plea of not guilty for murder and burglary charges in the May 7 death of Jeremy Safran, a professor of psychology at The New School for Social Research as well as New York University’s Postdoctoral Program in Psychotherapy & Psychoanalysis.
According to court papers, Safran hired Atadzhanov to “work on his lights” in his home, even though Atadzhanov said he wasn’t an electrician.
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The New York Daily News reported that Safran, a Canadian, wasn’t satisfied with Atadzhanov’s work, complaining: “This country cannot benefit from immigrants.”
Atadzhanov, who claimed to be from Tajikistan, said he was offended, and their fight escalated.
Atadzhanov said Safran tried to stab him with a combat knife, and he “followed his instincts,” according to court documents.
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Prosecutors, however, claim that Safran was working out when Atadzhanov broke into his home and attacked him.
The Daily News reported that a neighbor saw Atadzhanov going in and out of the house, and called Safran’s wife to warn her.
Police had gone to the home to investigate a report of a burglary in progress when they found Safran in the basement with trauma to his head and body.
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In his statement to police, Atadzhanov said that “the wife came down the stairs with a pit bull,” and scared him into a closet in the basement, where cops found him hiding inside with several tools, including a hammer.
“He is mourned and loved by hundreds of young students and by colleagues who he has touched around the world,” said Dr. Lewis Aron, Director at NYU’s Postdoctoral Program in Psychotherapy & Psychoanalysis about Safran last month. “It is mind numbing to me that this brilliant but so gentle and kind man met such a brutal and violent end.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.