A 22-year-old St. Albans man was convicted last week of the attempted murder of another Queens man with whom he had been arguing online over Facebook postings made by a mutual friend, Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said.
McHarland Cotiere was found guilty Friday of shooting Joshua Arrington, then 19, in December 2011, after which the victim’s leg had to be amputated in order to save his life, according to Brown.
“The defendant has been convicted of a violence and senseless assault, which caused the victim to lose his leg and almost his life,” Brown said in a prepared statement. “The attack was apparently instigated by comments made during a conversation that the two individuals had on the social networking site Facebook. Instead of just shutting off his computer and forgetting about the argument, the defendant chose to get a gun and confront the victim in person at his residence.”
Cotiere was convicted of attempted murder, assault, and criminal possession of a weapon following a 10-day jury trial before Queens Supreme Court Justice Kenneth C. Holder, who set sentencing for March 31. Cotere had been held in jail in lieu of $250,000 bail since his arraignment in April 2012, according to the DA.
According to trial testimony, Cotiere had an argument on Facebook with Arrington at about 11:30 a.m. on Dec. 27, 2011, during which Arrington provided his address to Cotiere. The 22-year-old then appeared at Arrington’s door, and Cotiere proceeded to pull out a .380 caliber pistol and shoot Arrington in the stomach, the DA said.
As Arrington began to run away, Cotiere chased after him and fired several more rounds in his direction before the teenage victim collapsed and Cotiere fled the scene, according to Brown.
Arrington was taken to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center in serious condition. The gunshot to the stomach struck his urethra, bowel and iliac artery, which, in turn, led to Arrington’s right leg being amputated above the knee, the DA said.
