Posts by ASokol@queensda.org

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…

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…

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,…

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Paublo Torres was indicted on charges of murder in the second degree, assault and other crimes for fatally shooting 34-year-old Denis Enrique Reyes-Nunez, his half-brother, at a crowded Hollis sports bar in February. The bar manager was also injured in the shooting. District Attorney Katz said: “As alleged,…

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that two defendants have been indicted on charges related to the shooting death and assault of 15-year-old Jaden Pierre during a large gathering of teens in Roy Wilkins Park last month. A group of teenagers allegedly set upon Jaden and beat him before one teen took out a gun…

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz and New York City Department of Investigation Commissioner Nadia Shihata announced that James Wilson was arraigned on charges of grand larceny and offering a false instrument for filing for submitting documentation falsely claiming that he had been treated by healthcare professionals in order to justify being out on sick leave…

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Dauri Batita has been charged with attempted robbery, assault and other crimes for ramming into a carload of women with his cargo van, striking another vehicle and assaulting four men, two of whom he attempted to rob. Batita was wearing a blue vest bearing the Amazon logo and…

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Lovepreet Singh was sentenced to 17 years to life in prison for the murder of 31-year-old Satnam Singh during a drive-by shooting in South Ozone Park in June 2022. Singh and his co-defendant carried out a targeted hit in broad daylight on the victim, who was killed while…

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Guy Rivera was sentenced to 115 years to life in prison today after being convicted by a jury of aggravated manslaughter in the first degree and attempted murder in the first degree for fatally shooting NYPD Detective Jonathan Diller and attempting to murder NYPD Sergeant Sasha Rosen in…

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Zahir Davis was arraigned and remanded today on charges of murder in the second degree, gang assault in the first degree and criminal possession of a weapon for the shooting death of 15-year-old Jaden Pierre in Roy Wilkins Park in St. Albans on April 16. District Attorney Katz…

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Asil Assaidi was charged with reckless endangerment, riot and other related crimes for performing dangerous, fiery driving stunts near two gas stations near the border of Middle Village and Maspeth on April 18. As a crowd of bystanders stood nearby, Assaidi and another driver circled the intersection of…

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz and New York City Police Department Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch announced today that Mouhamadou Sylla and Ncodjigui Sanogo are variously charged in a 131-count indictment with conspiracy, criminal sale of a firearm, weapon possession and other crimes for selling illegal guns during a long-term undercover investigation. One firearm sale took…

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Andres Portilla was sentenced to 40 years in prison for the kidnapping and rape of three young women including two minors. He brutally beat one teen and kept her captive in his car for two months, locking the girl in the trunk while he wasn’t there. Portilla pleaded…

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Rodolfo Lopez-Portillo was convicted by a jury of 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, striking the man repeatedly…

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Tiffany Yang was sentenced today to 120 days in jail after paying a total of $2.5 million in restitution for her role in a pig butchering scam that impacted 13 victims across the country. The victims were befriended online and convinced to invest in fraudulent assets through fake…

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Guy Rivera was convicted of aggravated manslaughter in the first degree and other crimes for fatally shooting NYPD Detective Jonathan Diller in Far Rockaway on March 25, 2024. The defendant was also convicted of first-degree attempted murder for attempting to shoot an NYPD sergeant at the scene. He…

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced today the appointment of four new Assistant District Attorneys to the Queens District Attorney’s Office. The new ADAs received their degrees from New York University School of Law, University of Virginia School of Law and University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School. District Attorney Katz said: “I am pleased to…

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Jalen Gonzalez has been indicted on charges of aggravated cruelty to animals, criminal mischief and other related crimes for killing his girlfriend’s cat, named Kitty, in January. The defendant allegedly pulled the cat by her head and leg and left the animal with a partial internal decapitation and…

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Eric Zafra Grosso was indicted on charges of assault as a hate crime and related crimes for allegedly attacking a rabbi, who was wearing a visible prayer shawl with fringes, walking at the intersection of Queens Boulevard and Yellowstone Boulevard in Forest Hills on January 27. The defendant…