Basketball Coach Busted In Punch That Killed Queens Tourist: NYPD

LONG ISLAND CITY, QUEENS -- A North Carolina college basketball coach could face murder charges after he allegedly punched a tourist in Long Island City who later died from his injuries, police said Friday.

Jamill Jones, a 35-year-old assistant coach at Wake Forest University, pleaded not guilty to a misdemeanor assault charge after he was arrested Thursday evening for punching Sandor Szabo, who was in town from Florida for a family wedding, authorities said. Jones was released on his own recognizance after a brief court hearing.

By Friday morning, police had deemed the fatal blow a homicide. The investigation is ongoing, and charges against Jones could be upgraded.

Jones and Szabo butted heads Sunday morning outside the hotel Szabo's brother was staying on 29th Street near 41st Avenue after the 35-year-old Boca Raton man mistook Jones' car for his Uber and knocked on the glass, according to police and reports from WPEC-TV.

Jones allegedly got out of his car and punched Szabo in the face, causing him to fall back and hit his head on the pavement, police said.

An unconscious Szabo was rushed to a nearby hospital in critical condition, police said. The blow fractured the left side of his face and caused bleeding to his brain, and he died Tuesday afternoon after being taken off life support.

Jones turned himself in to police Thursday evening alongside his attorney, who called the incident a "tragic accident," the Associated Press reported.

Jones joined Wake Forest's coaching staff in 2017 after stints at University of Central Florida, Virginia Commonwealth University and Florida Gulf Coast. He started his career working with the Team Takeover AAU program in Washington D.C. after graduating from Arkansas Tech University, where he played college basketball.

Szabo, a marketing guru, was described as "super, outgoing, friendly, and an incredibly smart businessman," in a Facebook post by What If Media Group, where he was one of 25 employees.

The digital marketing company described Szabo "a well-known and well-respected leader" who was critical to their growth and called his death "a devastating loss" for both his family and coworkers.

"He was part of our family," the post read. "We are all deeply saddened by this loss...His beautiful spirit and his love of life will remain with us. We are going to miss him dearly."

Lead photo by Chuck Burton/Associated Press