Press Release

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that Richard Swygert, 19, has been indicted by a Queens County grand jury and arraigned in Supreme Court for murder, assault and other charges. The Bronx resident is accused of shooting to death a 22-year-old Queens man and injuring one other person when both were struck by gunfire last month.

District Attorney Katz said, “This defendant must face the consequences for allegedly shooting another young man and ending his life. A second victim was shot but survived. We must prevent these tragedies from ever occurring in the first place by taking guns off our streets and stopping the senseless violence that is plaguing our neighborhoods.”

Swygert, of Harrison Avenue in the Bronx, was arraigned yesterday afternoon before Queens Supreme Court Justice Ushir Pandit-Durant on a six-count indictment charging him with murder in the second degree, assault in the first and second degree, two counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree and false personation. The defendant was remanded and ordered to return to Court on October 25, 2021. If convicted, Swygert faces up to 25 years-to-life in prison.

According to the charges, at approximately 1 a.m. on August 13, 2021, the defendant was at a party at a karaoke bar located at 38-10 138^th St. After arguing with the victim over a piece of jewelry, Swygert allegedly fired a gun in a private karaoke room. Dominic Malivert, of St. Albans, was shot multiple times and died from the injuries. A second victim was also struck by gunfire and was taken to a nearby hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries.

The investigation was conducted by Detective Maricela Quinones of the 109^th Detective Squad and Detective Shaquan Harvin of the Queens North Homicide Squad.

Senior Assistant District Attorney Courtney Finnerty of the District Attorney’s Homicide Bureau is prosecuting the case, with the assistance of Assistant District Attorney Kaitlyn Gaskin, under the supervision of Assistant District Attorneys Peter McCormack III, Senior Deputy Bureau Chief, John Kosinski and Karen Ross, Deputy Bureau Chiefs, and under the overall supervision of Executive Assistant District Attorney for Major Crimes Daniel A. Saunders.