GoFundMe deletes page for NYC bodega clerk who fatally stabbed attacker

By Edward Era Barbacena

GoFundMe has deleted the legal defense fund page for the hard-working Manhattan bodega worker holed up at Rikers Island on a whopping $250,000 bond after he fatally stabbed a violent ex-con he was trying to fend off.

Jose Alba, 51, is currently languishing behind bars at the notorious jail despite surveillance video capturing the alleged victim, Austin Simon, 35, storming behind the counter of the bodega to attack him Friday night.

Alba’s family insist he was acting in self-defense when he grabbed a knife to fight off Simon inside the Hamilton Heights Grocery.

Relatives immediately launched a GoFundMe page to help raise funds to cover Alba’s sky-high bail and legal fees after he was hit with a second-degree murder charge — but the page was mysteriously removed Wednesday night.

GoFundMe did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment Thursday.

The page had already raised $20,000 for Alba when it was suddenly removed, the Daily Mail reported.

Under GoFundMe’s terms of services, the platform can’t be used for the legal defense of “alleged crime associated with hate, violence, harassment, bullying, discrimination, terrorism.”

Controversial Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has faced backlash over Alba’s case after his office brought the charges — and then pushed for $500,000 bail for the father-of-three at his arraignment Saturday.

“We will defend this man,” United Bodegas of America president, Radhames Rodriguez, told The Post on Thursday. “The attacker went behind the counter. Alba doesn’t deserve to be in jail. It’s not right. It’s very sad.”

Rodriguez vowed to launch a new GoFundMe to help cover Alba’s legal fees — and planned to rally outside the DA’s office in Lower Manhattan next week.

Rodriguez vowed to launch a new GoFundMe to help cover Alba’s legal fees — and planned to rally outside the DA’s office in Lower Manhattan next week.

“These bodegas are mom and pop shops. This could have happened to me. It could happen to anyone,” said Rodriguez, who runs a bodega in The Bronx with his wife and son.

Rodriguez said he’s also seeking help from the National Rifle Association to help strategize on making it easier for bodega owners to apply legally obtain pistols from the city to defend themselves.

“We are going to defend ourselves,” Rodriguez said.

Alba’s daughter, Yulissa, doubled down on the self-defense argument, telling The Post Wednesday: “It was either him or the guy at the moment.”

She added, “He’s never hurt anybody. He’s never had an altercation where he had to defend himself. This is the first time for him.”

Twitter was also awash with criticism of the DA’s handling of the case, with some arguing it is a “miscarriage of justice” and others calling on Mayor Eric Adams to step in.

“@ManhattanDA Considering all the crime that’s occurring in our city, I am disgusted that you would decide to prosecute a citizen protecting himself,” one enraged Twitter user wrote.

“@ericadamsfornyc Please help free Jose Alba. The decision by @ManhattanDA to pursue this case is a miscarriage of justice. Mr. Alba shouldn’t spend another moment incarcerated,” another tweeted..

Alba, who has no known criminal record, is facing 15 to 25 years in prison if convicted of second-degree murder.

The attack unfolded after the clerk, who moved to the US from the Dominican Republic 30 years ago, got into an argument with Simon’s girlfriend over a bag of chips.

The girlfriend had tried to buy a snack for her 10-year-old daughter when her debit card declined, cops said.

She claimed Alba grabbed the bag of chips out of her daughter’s hand so she ran home to alert Simon.

Footage of the attack showed Simon storming into the bodega about 10 minutes later and shoving him against a wall.

The clerk then reached for a knife and stabbed Simon at least five times, according to a criminal complaint.

Simon, who was on parole for assaulting a cop at the time, later died from his injuries.