According to officials, the son of a once-famous New York restaurateur died in a freak fall at Madison Square Garden after a Rangers game last weekend.
According to The Washington Post, Ernest Vogliano, 61, was riding an escalator railing inside the World’s Most Famous Arena when he fell two to three floors to his death around 10:40 p.m. Saturday.
His death was later ruled accidental, according to his family and officials.
Lesa Vogliano, Vogliano’s widow, has now hired an attorney to investigate the incident, claiming she was kept in the dark about what happened.
“We have no idea what happened, but they do,” family attorney Fred Eisenberg told The Post. “We have to review the evidence.
“We know that he was there and we know that he died,” Eisenberg said. “We’d like to find out how.”
Around 10:40 p.m. on Saturday, the NYPD received a 911 call about an injured person at the arena and discovered an unresponsive man suffering from head trauma.
According to police, Vogliano was rushed to Bellevue Hospital and pronounced dead.
The FDNY said Wednesday that there was no record of a call to the Garden, so it’s unclear how Vogliano was transported to the hospital.
Vogliano died as a result of blunt force trauma, according to an autopsy performed by the city medical examiner, and his death at the Garden was ruled an accident.
But, according to Eisenberg, Lesa was never given the details, prompting him to demand on Wednesday that all evidence related to Vogliano’s death, including surveillance video footage, be preserved until it can be reviewed.
The incident occurs as MSG owner James Dolan’s company is being investigated by the New York State Liquor Authority, which has the potential to revoke the Garden’s, as well as Radio City Music Hall and the Beacon Theater’s, liquor licenses.
Dolan has also faced criticism for using facial-recognition technology to exclude fans he deemed undesirable from his venues, including lawyers with whom he has a legal dispute.
In an email sent Wednesday, an MSG representative called Vogliano’s death “a tragic accident” unrelated to the state liquor investigation.
“A fan at this past Saturday’s Rangers game was injured in a tragic accident while he was exiting the venue and was immediately transported to a local hospital where he passed away,” the email said. “Our deepest and heartfelt condolences go out to his loved ones.”
Ernest Sr., Vogliano’s father, was the longtime owner of Il Vagabondo restaurant on East 62nd Street, a one-time Italian social court that evolved into a popular eatery frequented by Cindy Crawford and Tom Hanks in its heyday.
The younger Vogliano founded Monster Productions, a web design firm in New York City, and published Aspen Aces & Eights magazine.
