News
TEENAGER ARRAIGNED ON INDICTMENT FOR MURDER OF 15-YEAR-OLD JADEN PIERRE IN ROY WILKINS PARK
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Zahir Davis was arraigned on an indictment charging him with murder in the second degree, gang assault and weapon possession for the shooting death of 15-year-old Jaden Pierre in Roy Wilkins Park in St. Albans on April 16. District Attorney Katz said: “Jaden Pierre was beaten by other…
MORE THAN 1,000 POUNDS OF ILLICIT CANNABIS PRODUCT SEIZED IN BAYSIDE
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced the closure of an unlicensed storefront cannabis dispensary operating on Bell Boulevard in Bayside. A court-authorized search of the premises on May 14 resulted in the seizure of thousands of pounds of illicit cannabis and tobacco products and two arrests on felony-level charges. The enforcement efforts were in response…
QUEENS DA, NYPD & NY ATTORNEY GENERAL REMOVE MORE THAN 100 GUNS, INCLUDING ASSAULT WEAPONS, AS PART OF GUN BUYBACK EVENT
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that 108 guns were collected Saturday at the Southern Baptist Church in East Elmhurst during a gun buyback event. The weapons were exchanged for bank cards pre-loaded with cash. The event was completely anonymous, with no identification required and no questions asked. The buyback served as the 13th such…
ST. ALBANS MAN CONVICTED OF THREE COUNTS OF FIRST-DEGREE MURDER FOR THE STABBING DEATHS OF HIS GIRLFRIEND AND TWO TENANTS IN 2023
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that David Daniel was convicted by a jury of three counts of murder in the first degree for the stabbing deaths of two tenants and his girlfriend inside his St. Albans home in November 2023. The defendant told investigators the attacks were prompted by the tenants’ failure to pay…
QUEENS RESIDENT CONVICTED OF MURDER AND ATTEMPTED MURDER FOR TWO-WEEK STABBING SPREE IN 2021 THAT KILLED ONE AND INJURED THREE OTHERS
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Mark Albano was convicted yesterday by a jury of murder, attempted murder and other crimes for stabbing four men in 2021, killing one on the Grand Avenue-Newton subway platform and seriously injuring three others. These attacks took place on four separate days over two-week period. District Attorney Katz…
DEFENDANT SENTENCED TO MORE THAN TWO DECADES IN PRISON FOR 2021 SHOOTING IN OZONE PARK
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Dwayne Scott was sentenced to 21-1/2 years in prison after pleading guilty to manslaughter in the first degree for gunning down a 20-year-old man in September 2021. The victim, father of a toddler and the defendant’s former friend, was fatally shot over an apparent money dispute. District Attorney…
DEFENDANT CONVICTED OF MURDER FOR SHOOTING DEATH OF ACCOMPLICE ON CROSS BAY BOULEVARD
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Richard Dixon was convicted of murder and other crimes for a June 2022 shooting in Ozone Park that led to the death of his accomplice, Raymond Francis, instead of the individual he was pursuing. The incident also resulted in multiple gun injuries to the two intended victims. The…
WOMAN INDICTED FOR FIRST-DEGREE ARSON AFTER SETTING FIRES AT THREE LOCATIONS IN MASPETH THAT INJURED TWO
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Shaniqua Fort was indicted on charges of first-degree arson, reckless endangerment and other crimes for allegedly setting fires at several storefront locations along Flushing and Grand Avenues in Maspeth on April 13. The defendant allegedly started a blaze that destroyed a Chinese restaurant and the apartments above the…
MASPETH MAN INDICTED ON UPGRADED CHARGES OF FIRST-DEGREE MURDER FOR SETTING FIRE AT FLUSHING BUILDING THAT KILLED FOUR AND INJURED OTHERS, INCLUDING TWO FDNY MEMBERS
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Roman Amatitla was indicted on upgraded charges of murder in the first degree along with murder in the second degree, arson in the first degree and related charges for setting a fire that killed four occupants of a Flushing building in March and injured seven others, including two…
HOLLIS MAN SENTENCED TO 25 YEARS TO LIFE FOR KILLING PAWN SHOP OWNER DURING 2022 ROBBERY
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Rodolfo Lopez-Portillo was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison for fatally beating Arasb Shoughi during a pawn store robbery in March 2022. The defendant sold two watches to the 60-year-old store owner and then violently attacked the victim with what appeared to be a metal pipe,…
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