EAST ELMHURST MAN CONVICTED OF MURDERING LIVERY CAB DRIVER IN 1997

Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown announced today the conviction of an East Elmhurst man on charges of intentionally murdering a livery taxi driver as they arrived at their Astoria destination in the summer of 1997.

District Attorney Brown identified the defendant as Oscar Rhodes, 26, of 92-64 43rd Avenue. He was convicted of murder and criminal possession of a weapon after a jury trial before Supreme Court Justice Stanley Katz who will impose sentence on November 16th. At that time the defendant faces a term of twenty-five years to life in prison.

District Attorney Brown said, "The wanton acts of this defendant deprived a woman and her son of a loving father and husband. The deceased, a hardworking immigrant from Turkey, lost his life for no apparent reason."

According to the testimony at trial the defendant hailed a livery cab driven by the deceased, Abdullah Cakirca near the Queensbridge Houses during the early morning hours of August 3, 1997. He asked the driver to take him to an address in the Astoria Houses where he grew up. When they arrived at their destination, the evidence showed, the defendant pulled out a gun and shot the driver in the chest. The defendant started to flee the scene. As he did so, he saw the driver attempting to get out of the cab and shot the driver again while fleeing. He was arrested on August 15, 1997 based on information developed by detectives of the 114th Precinct Detective Squad.

Assistant District Attorney Debra Lynn Pomodore of the District Attorney's Homicide Trials Bureau which is under the supervision of Assistant District Attorney Daniel J. Saunders and the overall supervision of Executive Assistant District Attorney Gregory L. Lasak is in charge of the prosecution.