Press Releases
QUEENS LAWYER CHARGED WITH POSSESSING CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE IMAGES AND OTHER CRIMES
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that Eric Levi, a lawyer residing in Long Island City, Queens, has been charged with promoting a sexual performance by a child, possessing child sexual abuse images and other crimes. District Attorney Katz said, “As alleged, the defendant downloaded and viewed numerous images of nude prepubescent children engaged…
GRAND JURY INDICTS QUEENS MAN FOR ELEVATOR ATTACKS ON WOMEN; DEFENDANT CHARGED WITH SEX ABUSE AND ATTEMPTED ROBBERY
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that Ralph Toro, 62, has been indicted by a Queens County grand jury and has been arraigned in Supreme Court on attempted robbery, sexual abuse and other charges. District Attorney Katz said, “The defendant is accused of committing two separate, terrifying elevator attacks – approximately an hour apart,…
JURY CONVICTS QUEENS MAN OF MURDER IN STABBING DEATH OF HIS PREGNANT GIRLFRIEND
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that Anthony Hobson, 51, was convicted yesterday after a jury trial of murder and other crimes in the February 2019 knife attack on his girlfriend, Jennifer Irigoyen, in Ridgewood Queens. District Attorney Katz said, “The defendant has been convicted and held responsible for taking the life of a…
QUEENS DEFENDANT SENTENCED TO 19 YEARS IN PRISON AFTER PLEADING GUILTY TO MANSLAUGHTER FOR KILLING MAN IN 2017
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that Jamel Cooks, 40, has been sentenced to 19 years in prison after pleading guilty to manslaughter for a deadly summer shooting in Far Rockaway, Queens on July 14, 2017. District Attorney Katz said, “This defendant shot and killed a 28-year-old man and injured the victim’s brother. Too…
MANHATTAN RESIDENT CONVICTED OF ROBBERY AND AGGRAVATED HARASSMENT IN HATE CRIME ATTACK ON MAN IN TRAIN STATION IN 2020
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that Kevin Carroll, 39, has been convicted at trial of robbery and other charges for a vicious hate crime attack on a man waiting at the LIRR Jamaica train station in July 2020. District Attorney Katz said, “Hate has no place in our borough. The defendant in this…
BROOKLYN MAN CHARGED WITH ATTEMPTED MURDER FOR BLOODY SHOOTING AT QUEENS MOTEL LAST YEAR
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that Rawle Washington, 27, has been charged with attempted murder, assault and other crimes for injuring a man he allegedly shot at the Surfside Motel in September 2021. The defendant allegedly fired several times at the victim. District Attorney Katz said, “As alleged, the defendant thought he made…
DEFENDANT SENTENCED TO 18 YEARS IN PRISON AFTER PLEADING GUILTY TO SHOOTING GIRLFRIEND IN JANUARY 2019
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that Vernon Jeffers, 44, has been sentenced to 18 years in prison after pleading guilty to attempted murder. The defendant shot the victim in her home in January 2019. District Attorney Katz said, “This defendant was sentenced for using a deadly firearm to twice shoot his then-girlfriend in…
QUEENS MAN INDICTED IN MACHETE DEATH OF HIS MOTHER KILLED IN FEBRUARY 2021
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that Osvaldo Diaz, 46, has been indicted by a Queens County grand jury and arraigned in Supreme Court on murder charges and other crimes. The defendant allegedly stabbed and slashed his 78-year-old mother to death on February 24, 2021. District Attorney Katz said, “The defendant allegedly attacked his…
QUEENS MAN PLEADS GUILTY TO MANSLAUGHTER IN SHOOTING DEATH OF THE MOTHER OF HIS INFANT CHILD IN 2017
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that Robert Rodriguez, 36, has pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the first degree for shooting and killing a 21-year-old woman in September 2017. District Attorney Katz said, “In pleading guilty, the defendant has admitted to killing the mother of his infant son, a young woman who also had…
QUEENS RESIDENT CHARGED WITH ATTEMPTED MURDER FOR SHOVING MAN ONTO SUBWAY TRACKS IN MAY 2021
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that Ronald Lacey, 23, has been charged with attempted murder, assault and other crimes for allegedly shoving a man onto the subway tracks at 21st Street-Queensbridge station in Long Island City on May 24, 2021. District Attorney Katz said, “Without provocation, this defendant allegedly shoved a man from…
QUEENS WOMAN CHARGED WITH KILLING MAN FOUND DEAD IN HER BED; VICTIM WAS SHOT ONCE IN THE HEAD IN SEPTEMBER 2021
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that Haiyan Deng, 31, has been indicted by a Queens County grand jury and arraigned in Supreme Court on murder, burglary and gun charges. The defendant was extradited from New Mexico after fleeing New York City where she allegedly shot and killed a man in her apartment in…
TWO MEN CHARGED WITH STABBING DEATH IN QUEENS; ONE OF THE DEFENDANTS ALSO CHARGED WITH SECOND MURDER TWO DAYS LATER
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that Raymond Kenner, 22, and Alexander Stephens, 31, have been charged with murder in the stabbing death of a man killed in Hollis, Queens, on December 21, 2021. Defendant Kenner is additionally charged with killing another man with a knife in Jamaica, Queens on December 23rd. District Attorney…
QUEENS MAN ARRAIGNED ON ATTEMPTED ROBBERY, SEXUAL ABUSE AND OTHER CHARGES FOR TWO SEPARATE ELEVATOR ATTACKS IN FOREST HILLS
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that Ralph Toro, 62, has been arraigned on attempted robbery, sexual abuse and other charges. District Attorney Katz said, “The defendant is accused of committing two separate, terrifying elevator attacks inside two different Forest Hills apartment buildings on the same day. Among other counts, I am charging him…
QUEENS WOMAN CHARGED WITH CRUELTY TO ANIMALS FOR ALLEGED NEGLIGENCE AND CRIMINAL CONTEMPT FOR VIOLATING COURT ORDER
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz today announced that Elizabeth Grant, 53, has been charged with failure to provide proper food and drink to animals and other charges for allegedly keeping more than 50 animals in unsanitary living conditions. Officials who visited the residence where Grant and her elderly mother live allegedly observed cats, dogs and…
DISBARRED LAWYER CHARGED WITH SWINDLING MORE THAN HALF A MILLION DOLLARS FROM 44 CLIENTS
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that disbarred lawyer Yohan Choi, 47, has been charged with grand larceny and other crimes for allegedly bilking more than 40 clients out of nearly $620,000. Between August 2015 and August 2020, the Queens practitioner represented the victims in personal injury claims and allegedly failed to give his…
NETWORK OF DRUG DEALERS SUPPLYING COCAINE, CRACK AND HEROIN IN QUEENS, THE BRONX AND NASSAU COUNTY DISMANTLED FOLLOWING LONG-TERM INVESTIGATION
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz, joined by New York City Police Commissioner Dermot Shea, announced today that 11 people have been indicted by a Queens County grand jury and four of the accused have also been additionally charged in criminal complaints. The defendants allegedly operated as a network of dealers who supplied a variety of…
QUEENS WEBSITE CONSULTANT CHARGED WITH LARCENY FOR SWIPING ABOUT $233,000 IN CRYPTOCURRENCY FROM TWO TECH ENTREPRENEURS
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that Nithushan Sachchithanantham, 28, has been charged with grand larceny for stealing the proceeds of an online sale of more than 3,000 non-fungible tokens. The defendant set up an online sale of digital artwork for his two clients and then allegedly diverted nearly $233,000 in SOL cryptocurrency to…
BROOKLYN LAWYER CHARGED WITH BILKING PPP COVID RELIEF AND SBA DISASTER LOAN PROGRAMS OUT OF $287,000 WITH BOGUS CLAIM OF PAYING WORKERS AT ST. ALBANS REALTY COMPANY
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz, joined by New York City Police Commissioner Dermot Shea and U.S. Postal Inspector in Charge Philip R. Bartlett, U.S. Postal Inspection Service-New York Division, announced today that defense attorney Jamie Burke, 59, has been charged with grand larceny and other crimes for allegedly lying on the Federal Paycheck Protection Payment…
DA KATZ ANNOUNCES COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS CHIEF COLLEEN BABB AWARDED PRESTIGIOUS THOMAS E. DEWEY MEDAL FOR OUTSTANDING WORK
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Colleen Babb, Executive Assistant District Attorney of the Community Partnerships Division, is the Queens County recipient of the seventeenth annual Thomas E. Dewey Medal. The Thomas E. Dewey Medal is awarded each year by the Association of the Bar of the City of New York to an outstanding…
SEX TRAFFICKER SENTENCED TO UP TO NINE YEARS IN PRISON AFTER PLEADING GUILTY TO FORCING TEEN INTO PROSTITUTION
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today that Tyquan Henderson has been sentenced to up to nine years in prison after pleading guilty to sex trafficking a then-16-year-old girl. The victim was forced into having sex with strangers for money in May and June of 2018. “The defendant used both intimidation and manipulation to force…
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