Where is Jose Alba now? Bodega clerk considers leaving NYC weeks after DA drops murder charges

Jose Alba made it to the headlines after he was charged with the murder of a customer, Austin Simon. The 61-year-old Bodega worker had allegedly stabbed the man in self-defense, and what followed was a month of prison visits and public outrage. On July 19, the DA decided to drop the second degree murder charges against him. Since then, the Bodega employee has made the decision to depart from New York City and go back to his native Dominican Republic.

A source close to Jose Alba confirmed to The Post on Friday that he was considering moving back to his native country as he feared for his life in America.

The store manager of the Blue Moon convenience store in Manhattan, where a bloody encounter had left Simon dead and sent Alba to Rikers Island, said that Alba was traveling back to roots in Santiago, Dominican Republic. The manager said:

"He doesn’t work here anymore. He’s getting ready to move out of the country. He doesn’t come [to the store anymore], but we go visit him at home from time to time."

Francisco Marte, the head of the Bodega Association, sympathized with the former worker and said that the past month has been extremely draining for the elderly man, both physically and mentally. Regarding Jose Alba's current whereabouts, Marte said:

"He is taking a hiatus right now. He went upstate to get away from everything."

The events of July 1 have left an indelible mark on Alba and have become a source of trauma for the 61-year-old who was assaulted by a man much younger and stronger than him at his workplace. Marte further said:

"He is trying to get back to normal, but he said it’s very hard when you have flashbacks of what happened. We are getting him professional help, and then [Alba and his family] decide whether he goes back to the DR for good or just spends some time there."

Amidst intense public outrage aimed at Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, Jose Alba's murder charges were dropped, however the tragedy has destroyed his faith in America. Concern for his own safety drives Alba homewards.

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Remembering the July 1 attack as Jose Alba prepares to depart for his native country

In an act of self-defense, Jose Alba stabbed a 31-year-old customer to death at Hamilton Heights, a Manhattan convenience store, on July 1. Law enforcement officers did not perceive the case as self-defense, however, and the Santiago native was promptly charged with second-degree murder and sent to Rikers Island.

On the contrary, surveillance camera footage obtained from the store showed the bodega worker being assaulted and threatened by Austin Simon before he grabbed a knife and fatally stabbed Simon. The video, which surfaced after the arrest, led to a public outrage demanding justice for Alba, who was being held on Rikers Island on a bail of $250,000.

Though he was out of prison a day later, and the charges against him were dropped by the DA on July 19, Alba still lives in fear for his life and plans on leaving the country to recuperate.