The father of a murdered Bronx shelter manager said on Friday his daughter might still be alive if city officials listened to her pleas for added security at the troubled facility.
“My daughter was fighting for more security at work,” Ana Charle’s tearful dad, Carlos, 74, told The Post. “Had there been extra security before, perhaps she would still be alive today.”
Carlos Charle said his 36-year-old daughter, who was born in Spain, was completely selfless and poured her heart into her work.
“She gave her life to others and now, after her death, she got what she was fighting for,” he said, noting that the city had beefed up safety measures at the Project Renewal facility where his daughter Ana worked.
West Spruill, a career criminal who lived in Charle’s facility until January and who was infatuated with her, has been charged with her Monday murder.
Prosecutors said the lustful Spruill stalked Charle at the Wakefield facility and gunned her down when she fought off his rape attempt.
He had been waiting by her car with her licence-plate number and wrist ties, sources have said.
Her distraught dad said he takes some comfort in knowing his daughter’s killer will likely be going away where he can no longer harm innocent people.
“We think the justice system will take its course here and he will get what he deserves,” Carlos said. “So long as no one has to suffer the same fate that Ana did.”
Charle’s family said they intend to cremate her body and take her ashes back to Spain. A memorial service will be held in New York either Sunday or Monday, they said.
Meanwhile, Spruill — who has prior convictions for attempted murder and assault — skipped a court appearance Friday and is scheduled to go before a judge next week.
Spruill’s former case worker said her client became “fixated” on Charle during his time at the shelter and had requested a transfer because he was concerned he was a danger to others.
“He would say he had issues with the other clients and he didn’t want to be in a position where he could hurt someone,” Angelina Romeo said.
“I know Ana would tell me he would make comments to her and would ask her out,” she said. “She would redirect him but I think at the end it got him angry and that may be one of the reasons he wanted to transfer.”
Additional reporting by Kevin Fasick and Daniel Prendergast