An Ivy League graduate celebrating his last day of work at Yelp reportedly choked and socked a cop when he was stopped for jaywalking in Manhattan, according to law enforcement sources and court papers.
Eric Cho, 23, was walking back to his Kips Bay apartment after a night spent boozing with friends when two officers in an unmarked car noticed him crossing East 28th Street against the light at 12:45 a.m. Saturday, sources told The Post.
The officers hit their siren and told Cho, a Cornell University graduate, not to cross the road, before he reached into the driver’s window and grabbed Officer William Bloom by the neck — choking him and punching him in the chest, sources said.
Both cops got out of the car to arrest Cho but he resisted, throwing punches, flailing and kicking Bloom in the chest as they cuffed him, according to a complaint filed in Manhattan criminal court Saturday.
He was charged with assaulting a police officer, strangulation in the second degree, resisting arrest and harassment.
Cho’s attorney Andrew Hoffmann denied the charges against his client, describing him as “small” and “a very intelligent, nice kid from a very, very nice family.”
“Here you had a kid who has zero prior contact with criminal justice. He’s never been in trouble, never been in a fight,” Hoffmann told The Post.
“There are times that young people have a few drinks, but the idea that this guy could somehow be a threat to experienced police officers is just not credible.”
After his arrest, Cho was taken to the hospital, where he was treated for a gash on his head that Hoffmann said was caused by the officers.
“My client got beat up pretty good,” he said, adding that Cho planned to sue the city.
“I wasn’t there, but it sounds like somebody bashed him over the head with a stick or radio,” Hoffmann said. “He was beat up pretty good.”
Bloom suffered scratches to his left ankle and arm and swelling to his wrist and shoulder that left him in “substantial pain,” according to court papers.
Prosecutors requested $10,000 bail, but Cho was released without bail by a Manhattan judge. He will be back in court on Oct. 17.