Press Releases
FLUSHING MAN SENTENCED TO 25 YEARS TO LIFE IN PRISON FOR 2022 SHOOTING NEAR BODEGA
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Damion Howell was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison for the August 2022 murder of Julian Askew in Jamaica. Howell was convicted by a jury of fatally shooting the 29-year-old after the men got into an argument in a bodega over crude remarks the defendant made…
QUEENS RESIDENT SENTENCED TO 24 YEARS IN PRISON FOR SHOOTING LONG ISLAND MAN OUTSIDE FUNERAL
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Joseph Gilbert Stevens was sentenced today to 24 years in prison for fatally shooting 49-year-old Richard Carter outside of a funeral in April. Stevens pleaded guilty to manslaughter in July for the fatal shooting. District Attorney Katz said: “The defendant acted without consideration or respect for an entire…
BROOKLYN MAN WHO CHASED WOMAN WITH HAMMER INDICTED FOR ASSAULT
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Shaleek Brunson was indicted on charges of assault, criminal possession of a weapon and other crimes for wielding a hammer and chasing a woman onto the grounds of the Jewish Institute of Queens in Rego Park. While there, Brunson ran into the school yard where children were playing…
BRONX MOTORIST CONVICTED OF FIRST-DEGREE ASSAULT FOR SERIOUSLY INJURING E-BIKE RIDER
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that a jury convicted Harold Vega of first-degree assault, reckless endangerment, resisting arrest and other charges for a July 2024 hit-and-run collision that left a 39-year-old father gravely injured. Vega, evincing a depraved indifference to human life, recklessly led police on a high-speed chase through Astoria past dozens of…
FORMER NYPD OFFICER INDICTED ON CONSPIRACY, ASSAULT AND OTHER CHARGES FOR HIT-AND-RUN COLLISION WITH PEDESTRIAN IN SOUTH OZONE PARK
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that Jatinderpal Singh was indicted on conspiracy, assault, tampering with physical evidence and other charges for a March 2026 hit-and-run collision that nearly killed a 22-year-old woman who was crossing the street. The defendant, an off-duty NYPD officer at the time, allegedly fled the scene without rendering aid…
POSTAL WORKER INDICTED FOR MAIL THEFT AND FORGERY
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Jere Campbell was indicted for forgery, identity theft, grand larceny and other crimes for allegedly stealing mail and cashing money orders intended for others while working as a clerk at the Whitestone Post Office. Campbell is alleged to have stolen more than $20,000 in a 15-month period. Some…
TWO CONSPIRATORS SENTENCED FOR STAGING CAR CRASHES ON NEW YORK CITY HIGHWAYS
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz and New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced today that Jaime Huiracocha and Victor Murillo have been sentenced for their roles in staging three car crashes on New York City highways and seeking insurance payouts for damages and purported injuries. Huiracocha orchestrated the collisions by recruiting participants with promises of cash…
FAR ROCKAWAY MAN PLEADS GUILTY TO BEATING MALBA HOMEOWNERS
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Justin Aguilera pleaded guilty to attacking a Malba couple in November 2025. When the couple attempted to clear trespassers assembled for an illegal car meetup near their property, Aguilera, along with others, punched, kicked, and stomped the husband to the ground outside his home then punched his wife…
TEEN DEFENDANT CHARGED IN MULTIPLE CHAIN SNATCHINGS TARGETING FEMALE PEDESTRIANS
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that a 16-year-old has been charged with robbery, grand larceny and assault for forcibly snatching jewelry from women in three separate incidents in June and July, two on Merrick Boulevard and another on Roosevelt Avenue. District Attorney Katz said: “As alleged, this defendant approached unsuspecting pedestrians in broad…
FLUSHING MAN CONVICTED OF MURDER FOR 2022 SHOOTING NEAR JAMAICA BODEGA
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Damion Howell was convicted of murder and other crimes for the August 2022 shooting death of Julian Askew, 29, on Waltham Street in Jamaica. The defendant fled the United States after the victim died and was apprehended nine months later. District Attorney Katz said: “Damion Howell propositioned a…
EAST HAMPTON MAN INDICTED FOR FATAL NEW YEAR’S DAY HIT-AND-RUN COLLISION IN CORONA
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Jonnathan Barbecho has been arraigned on indictment charges of aggravated vehicular homicide, manslaughter, assault and other offenses for a deadly hit-and-run collision in Corona that killed 27-year-old Darwin Adrian Malan Cargua and seriously injured another young man on New Year’s Day. The defendant fled to Ecuador after the…
BROOKLYN MAN CHARGED FOR FATAL STABBING IN LONG ISLAND CITY APARTMENT BUILDING
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Bretford Brewer has been arraigned on murder and weapon possession charges for the stabbing death of Carlos Penzo, who was found in the bathtub of his Long Island City apartment with multiple stab wounds to his face, neck and torso. A large kitchen knife was found with the…
TWO FAR ROCKAWAY DEFENDANTS SENTENCED FOR KILLING LONG ISLAND MAN IN 2022
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Michael Williams has been sentenced to 22 years to life in prison and Kevon Johnson has been sentenced to 20 years to life in prison for killing 24-year-old Jabeon Bivins in August 2022. Johnson and Williams fired multiple shots in an open walkway at the Redfern Houses as…
QUEENS VILLAGE MAN SENTENCED TO 25 YEARS IN PRISON FOR RAPING DAUGHTER
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that a 60-year-old Queens Village man was sentenced to 25 years in prison for a pattern of persistent and escalating sexual abuse against his daughter including intercourse. The man initiated the sexual abuse with his then 10-year-old child during school break visits then increased the assaults once he…
FRESH MEADOWS MAN CHARGED WITH HATE CRIMES FOR DAMAGING PROPERTY OUTSIDE JEWISH-OWNED BAGEL SHOP THAT DISPLAYED ISRAELI FLAGS
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Dawood Faisal was arraigned on hate crime charges for destroying property in May outside of a kosher bagel store on Union Turnpike in Fresh Meadows that displayed Israeli flags. Faisal allegedly knocked over multiple plant stands outside the shop on two separate occasions and, in one instance, hurled…
BROOKLYN MAN WHO CHASED WOMAN WITH HAMMER CHARGED WITH ASSAULT
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Shaleek Brunson was arraigned on charges of assault, criminal possession of a weapon and other crimes for wielding a hammer and chasing a woman onto the grounds of the Jewish Institute of Queens in Rego Park. While there, Brunson pushed an 8-year-old boy into a fence and bit…
UNLICENSED SURGEON SENTENCED TO 5 TO 15 YEARS IN PRISON FOR KILLING 31-YEAR-OLD WOMAN DURING OPERATION IN MAKESHIFT HOME CLINIC
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Felipe Hoyos Foronda has been sentenced to five to 15 years in prison for the death of 31-year-old Maria Penaloza. Penaloza suffered cardiac arrest inside the defendant’s Astoria apartment, which was set up as a makeshift surgical clinic. Hoyos Foronda, who was not a licensed physician in the…
MOTHER AND DAUGHTER CHARGED WITH OPERATING INTERNATIONAL STOLEN MERCHANDISE RING FROM EAST ELMHURST APARTMENT AND VALLEY STREAM HOME
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz and New York State Police Superintendent Steven G. James announced today that mother and daughter Maria Betances and Leslie Cruz were charged with criminal possession of stolen property, grand larceny, conspiracy and other crimes for allegedly operating a retail theft and fencing ring from a registered daycare. The duo allegedly…
GEORGIA MAN INDICTED FOR MURDER-FOR-HIRE PLOT AGAINST CORONA RESIDENT
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that Luis Belis was indicted for first-degree murder and other offenses for fatally shooting 37-year-old Jairo Vinces-Cobena in March on a Corona street. Belis allegedly contracted with a third-party contact in Ecuador to kill the victim, whom he did not know, for a promised $20,000 payment. District Attorney…
FLUSHING MAN SENTENCED TO 23 YEARS IN PRISON FOR FATAL EXECUTION-STYLE SHOOTING OUTSIDE CORONA DELI
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that Omar Prado was sentenced to 23 years in prison for the execution-style shooting of 29-year-old Kelvin Gomez. Prado pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the first degree last month, admitting that he shot the victim in June 2021. District Attorney Katz said: “After a petty verbal argument, defendant…