Third young man found dead in New York City creek in the last year
Karl Clemente and John Castic were both found in the same waterway last year after partying in the area
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A 30-year-old man was discovered dead in New York City’s Newtown Creek just one year after two other young partygoers were also found dead in the same polluted waterway, which is near several nightlife venues.
Damani Alexander, 30, was found in the creek, which straddles Brooklyn and Queens, on July 30. The circumstances of Alexander’s death bear a striking resemblance to the two other young men — Karl Clemente and John Castic — who were found dead in Newtown Creek last summer after leaving the Brooklyn Mirage night club.
Alexander’s body was discovered at around 12:15 a.m. on July 30 after someone called 911 for a water rescue, the NYPD said. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
His mother, Desiree Nicholson, told Pix11 that Alexander had gone to the Knockdown Center, an event venue in the Maspeth neighborhood of Queens, on July 28. The venue was hosting a Tiki Disco from 2 to 10 p.m. that day.
At some point on July 28, Alexander told his friend that he was in danger, Nicholson told the outlet.
It’s not clear what happened in the two days between when he attended the Tiki Disco and when his body was found in the creek.
Investigators located his wallet — but not his phone, Nicholson noted. There were also no signs of trauma and investigators believed it is unlikely that he drowned, she said.
Police are investigating the incident. The Independent has emailed the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, which will determine the cause of death.
“Damani loved life,” his mother told Pix11.
Following the tragedy, Council Member Robert Holden, who represents the area encompassing the Knockdown Center, told The Independent in a statement: “My heart goes out to the family of Damani Alexander during this difficult time, and more must be done to prevent future tragedies.”
Holden’s office reached out to the NYPD, which said they do not suspect foul play in this particular case — nor in the deaths of the two individuals last year, a spokesperson for Holden said. Police also acknowledged that there are insufficient safety measures in the area. “When establishments serving liquor are located near a body of water, the risk of tragedy increases, as we’ve unfortunately witnessed,” the spokesperson said.
This information hopefully puts to rest online theories that there is a serial killer prowling the area.
Alexander’s death marks the third young man who was found in the waterway in the past year. Although none of the three deaths have been formally linked, they bear undeniable similarities.
On June 11, 2023, Karl Clemente, 27, went to the East Williamsburg nightclub The Brooklyn Mirage, a 20-minute walk from the Knockdown Center. He was turned away around 10 p.m. because staff said he had been drinking, his father told Fox News at the time.
Video surveillance obtained by the outlet showed Clemente running around the area before his disappearance.
“Why was he running?” his father told the outlet. “Someone was chasing him. There’s something fishy here.”
His body was found days later, on June 16, but his wallet and phone were not recovered. The medical examiner determined Clemente died from drowning and ruled the manner of death an accident.
Two months later, John Castic, also 27, suffered a similar fate.
Castic was last seen leaving the venue around 3 a.m. on July 29, 2023. Around 11 a.m. on August 1, someone called 911 after seeing a “bloated, shirtless body floating face-down” in a branch of the East River tributary, the New York Post reported at the time.
Both his wallet and phone were recovered with his body. The medical examiner’s office confirmed that Castic drowned but marked the manner of death as “undetermined.” His father noted at the time that there were no signs of foul play.
While theories swirled online that the deaths were connected, given their similar circumstances, city officials insist that the tragedies are indicative of a larger problem: a lack of proper safety measures in the area.
The area around the waterway has become a hot spot for nightlife in recent years, with the Knockdown Center, Brooklyn Mirage, Basement, Elsewhere, and other nightclubs all within walking distance from Newtown Creek.
“The Newtown Creek, on both the Brooklyn and Queens sides, is far too accessible to the public, and we urgently need security and safety improvements not just around the creek but also at the various clubs nearby that serve as party spots,” Council Member Holden said in the statement.
Last year, the remarkable similarities sparked a local outcry for safety improvements in the area.
An online letter campaign to Council Member Jennifer Gutiérrez, who represents the area encompassing the venue, circulated last summer, underscoring the safety concerns of the nightclub.
The letter noted “capacity by significant numbers,” lack of security surrounding the venue, an absence of well-lit pathways on the way to train stations, “unpermitted drivers posing as rideshares,” and “aggressive club and venue promoters surrounding the area.”
Gutiérrez told The Independent last year that the area was a manufacturing zone, not set up for nightlife. She warned of the area’s lack of lighting and scarce cell phone service. “The heartbreaking and preventable deaths of Karl Clemente and John Castic… highlight the need for basic public safety measures and street infrastructure in the East Williamsburg Industrial Business Zone,” the council member said last August.
Although having nightlife in an industrial area is not ideal, Gutiérrez said: “If people are here, we need to figure out how to make it safer for folks.”
In the fall of 2023, in the aftermath of the deaths of Clemente and Castis, the Office of Nightlife worked in the East Williamsburg area to curb unlicensed taxi pickups, improve lighting, and boost cell service.
It’s not immediately clear what safety measures have been implemented in the area since the 2023 deaths. The Independent has reached out to the Knockdown Center for comment.