| Feared pol would bare '96 assault
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The political wanna-be left his will on a table, stuffed a .40-caliber gun in his pocket and headed out to stalk Councilman James Davis. "Obviously, this guy knew he wasn't coming home," a police source said. Around that time, Askew called the FBI with a bombshell accusation: He said Davis had threatened to reveal Askew's 1996 arrest for attacking a gay lover with a hammer - unless Askew gave up his bid to unseat Davis. Askew, 31, also told the feds that Davis had promised him cash and a cushy city job to stay on the political sidelines - and had threatened to hurt him or his relatives if he refused, law enforcement sources said. None of Askew's incendiary claims about Davis, 41, could be independently confirmed. But they offer a frightening glimpse inside the mind of the man who unleashed Wednesday's bloody terror that ended with both men dead inside City Hall. The fears, threats and delusions of grandeur apparently were bubbling inside Askew's head when he pumped six bullets into Davis after the councilman ushered him around security into City Hall. "Who knows what this guy's motive was?" said one police source. "He obviously was a nut." Police searching Askew's home in a restored Fort Greene townhouse found no suicide note. But there was a will left on a table along with a letter to his brother that gave details about where some of his property was kept. Police also found medication used to treat the AIDS virus - and court records indicate Askew, a one-time pharmaceutical salesman who became a construction contractor, was HIV-positive. Still a mystery Investigators are still trying to unravel the tangled relationship between Askew and Davis, who met only a few weeks before they died together in a bloody heap in the balcony overlooking the City Council chamber. One source said there were rumors that Askew may have mistakenly thought Davis, known as an affable and outgoing man, was flirting with him in some way. Whatever their relationship, something led Askew to snap - and police sources now believe that the threatened exposure of Askew's criminal past may be to blame. Askew told an FBI agent Wednesday that Davis informed him that he had obtained the sealed records about his two arrests - the 1996 attack and a 1999 arrest for grand larceny - and was hounding him to quit the race. Jerry Skurnik, who worked on Davis' 2001 campaign, said he would not be surprised if Davis poked around for dirt on Askew. "He was a former cop," Skurnik said. The 1999 case was dismissed. But court records of the 1996 case, which are open to the public, paint a disturbing portrait of Askew. Mario Romero, identified in the complaint as Askew's "domestic partner," described a bloody attack that started around 11:30 p.m. on Dec. 29, 1996, at the W. 43rd St. apartment the two shared. Romero claimed Askew "repeatedly struck [him] over his head, face and body with a hammer," causing injuries that sent him to Bellevue Hospital. Askew was charged with felony assault and weapons counts, but Manhattan prosecutors quickly reduced the charges to misdemeanors. Almost a year later, Askew agreed to plead guilty to one count of harassment, just a violation. That allowed the police record and fingerprint file to be sealed, although the court record remained open. Several Manhattan criminal judges issued orders of protection directing Askew to stay away from Romero. The last one expired in 1998. Over the next few years, Askew, a handsome man who once hoped to launch a modeling career, got the political bug. He collected signatures this spring for a run to unseat Davis, who barely won his first race for the seat two years ago. The challenger apparently tried to submit his petitions minutes before a filing deadline on July 10 but was turned away by Board of Elections officials. Embittered by the snafu, he refused to give up his dreams of being a councilman. He tried to get Davis to sign a letter that would designate Askew as Davis' successor if the councilman had to vacate his seat. Hours before he would kill Davis, Askew called Tony Herbert, another challenger to Davis. He asked Herbert to drop out of the race and name Askew as his replacement. Herbert refused and hung up.
With Bob Port and Michele McPhee |
