A heroic homeless man — who was killed saving a woman from an attacker only to have his lifeless body ignored by two dozen passers-by — was mourned today in front of a small gathering that included a top Guatemalan diplomat.
“What happened here was a great tragedy. A man, a Guatemalan, who was trying to help someone unfortunately was left on the ground for an hour without someone calling for help,” said Guatemalan Consule General Rosa Maria Merida de Mora at his wake in Bushwick.
“He didn’t get the medical attention he needed, he was just left there.”
Hugo Tale-Yax, 31, an immigrant from Guatemala, was fatally stabbed while breaking up a violent attack on a woman in Jamaica on April 18.
Tale-Yax crumpled into a pool of blood after the stabbing and remained there for nearly 90 minutes, as two dozen people passed without helping, The Post revealed in disturbing surveillance video.
“It’s so painful to see nobody did anything, no one helped,” said Juan Tacam, 29, a cousin. “Even if it’s a drunk, whoever it is, if they need help, please call for it.”
Another cousin, Isaac Tacam, 22, added: “If there’s an animal loose, people will call authorities and my cousin was on the ground dying and nobody did anything.”
The victim’s body is expected to be taken back to his hometown of Totonicapan on Friday.