Press Release

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 in the face when she attempted to intervene.

District Attorney Katz said: “This defendant participated in a chaotic, illegal street takeover in a quiet neighborhood. When a homeowner asked him to leave, Justin Aguilera ruthlessly pummeled the man on his lawn and then attacked the victim’s wife when she attempted to intervene. We will not allow our streets to be taken over by this type of behavior, nor will we allow those who object to it be threatened or injured.”

Aguilera, 19, of Far Rockaway, pleaded guilty to gang assault in the second degree in satisfaction of the original indictment before Acting Queens Supreme Court Justice Joanne Watters. The defendant was ordered to return to court on September 23 when he faces a sentence of 4 ½ years in prison.

District Attorney Katz said that, according to the indictment, on November 23, 2025, a homeowner heard a loud commotion outside his home at approximately 12:40 a.m. on 11th Avenue in Malba caused by multiple motor vehicles spinning their tires and creating smoke in front of the corner property.

The homeowner saw a group of at least 10 people, including defendant Aguilera, assembled near his yard and went outside holding a baseball bat to direct them away from the area. He was accompanied by his wife.

When the man and his wife addressed the group, approximately six to eight individuals in the group advanced onto the couple’s lawn. One of them threatened to kill the husband saying, “I’ll pop you. I’ll put you six feet under. You’re not hard.”

The group, including the defendant, advanced toward the front door of the victim’s residence and surrounded the homeowner. The victim was punched, causing him to fall. Aguilera then punched, kicked and stomped on the male victim while he was on the ground.  When the victim’s wife attempted to intervene and push the individuals away from her husband, Aguilera punched her in the mouth. Following the physical attack, Aguilera fled the area.

Approximately three hours later, at 3:53 a.m. that morning, Aguilera was arrested for several traffic violations near the intersection of Union Turnpike and Utopia Parkway, wearing clothing that led to his identification in video footage of the earlier assault. He was arrested in December for his role in the Malba incident.

The male victim suffered multiple rib fractures, a fracture of his right shoulder and other related injuries.

Assistant District Attorneys Dylan Nesturrick and Hugh McCann, of the District Attorney’s Career Criminal Major Crimes Bureau, are prosecuting the case under the supervision of Assistant District Attorney Michael Whitney, Bureau Chief, Timothy Regan, Deputy Bureau Chief, and under the overall supervision of Chief Executive Assistant District Attorney Shawn Clark.