Press Releases
OAKLAND GARDENS WOMAN CHARGED WITH ATTEMPTED MURDER FOR RANDOM KNIFE ATTACK ON BAYSIDE MAN
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Melissa Duran was arraigned on a complaint charging her with attempted murder, assault and other crimes for randomly attacking a man as he stood outside his home on 53rd Avenue. Duran pulled up in front of a 54-year-old Bayside man’s house Thursday morning and cut the stranger across…
ALLEGED SQUATTERS INDICTED FOR ILLEGALLY OCCUPYING BAYSIDE HOME
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Vernon Glass and Lusascha Taylor have been indicted on charges of burglary, grand larceny and criminal trespass for illegally occupying a vacant Bayside home for more than two years. The prior owner of the home died in 2018 without heirs or a will. District Attorney Katz said: “As…
LONG ISLAND MAN INDICTED ON MURDER CHARGES FOR 2023 SHOOTING OUTSIDE ST. ALBANS NIGHTCLUB
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that Jhavaughn Pinnock was arraigned on an indictment charging him with murder and other crimes in connection with the April 2023 shooting death of 23-year-old Jevaughn Jeminson outside the Pure Lounge nightclub in St. Albans. Pinnock was apprehended in Florida and extradited to New York. District Attorney Katz…
FAR ROCKAWAY MAN SENTENCED TO 4 ½ YEARS IN PRISON FOR GANG ASSAULT DURING ILLEGAL MALBA CAR MEETUP
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Justin Aguilera was sentenced to 4½ years in prison for brutally attacking a Malba couple outside their home during an illegal car meetup in November 2025. Aguilera pleaded guilty last month to gang assault after attacking the male homeowner, who attempted to clear him and other trespassers from…
FORMER POSTAL WORKER CHARGED WITH CASHING STOLEN U.S. TREASURY CHECKS
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that Kasandra Perez was arrested for grand larceny, criminal possession of stolen property, criminal possession of a forged instrument and other crimes for allegedly cashing United States Treasury checks intended for others while working as a clerk at the South Ozone Park post office. Perez is alleged to…
BROOKLYN MAN SENTENCED TO 17 YEARS FOR CARJACKING THAT LED TO NYPD FRIENDLY FIRE INCIDENT
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Kevin Dubuisson was sentenced today to 17 years in prison for robbery, assault and menacing for an August 2025 carjacking incident that preceded an NYPD detective being shot in the hand and leg in a friendly fire incident. An 87-year-old woman and her 59-year-daughter were injured when Dubuisson…
BROOKLYN MAN INDICTED FOR FATALLY STABBING LONG ISLAND CITY RESIDENT
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Bretford Brewer was indicted for murder, weapon possession and public lewdness for the fatal stabbing of 36-year-old Carlos Penzo in the victim’s Long Island City apartment in August. Penzo was found in his bathtub with multiple stab wounds and a large knife on his stomach. Brewer was apprehended…
DEFENDANT CONVICTED OF ASSAULT FOR BRUTAL ATTACK OF ASTORIA MASSEUSE
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that Tahir Toloa was convicted at trial in the 2024 assault on a masseuse inside an Astoria spa. The defendant viciously attacked the 55-year-old victim with a firearm and his fists, then forced her to open a register at gunpoint and removed money. He then sexually assaulted the…
BROOKLYN MAN CHARGED WITH MULTIPLE COMMERCIAL AND RESIDENTIAL BURGLARIES IN FIVE-WEEK SPAN
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz and New York City Police Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch announced that Gregory Schroeder was charged in connection with five burglaries and one attempted burglary at businesses, a Boys & Girls Club location and a private residence during a five-week period in May and June. The defendant allegedly took $9,300 in…
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…