Two men in separate homicide cases were sentenced last week to 25 years to life in prison.
Andrew Caballero, 39, of Flushing, and Karma Sonam, 20, of Astoria, received their terms on Wednesday. Caballero’s attorney, Robert Didio, indicated that he has filed a notice of appeal on behalf of his client to get the ball rolling on having the verdict overturned. Sonam’s lawyer, Warren Silverman, also began the appeal process; however since he was assigned to Sonam’s case by the court and not retained, Silverman has petitioned the appellate court to provide Sonam new counsel.
Caballero was convicted last month of second-degree murder in the February 1995 death of Jason Kollmann. According to the Queens District Attorney’s office, Caballero stabbed Kollmann on the roof of Caballero’s Kissena Boulevard home several times in the neck, chest and back and then pushed him off the roof, causing him to land on a fifth-floor fire escape. Kollmann was pronounced dead at the scene.
“He’s obviously disappointed in the verdict,” Didio said of Caballero, “but he understands that this is a process, and we’ll continue to move forward with the appeal to ultimately attain his freedom.”
Didio went on to say that he’s “extremely confident” that the murder conviction will be overturned.
“We believe there was reasonable doubt,” he said. “The verdict was against the weight of the evidence.”
Sonam was convicted of two counts of second-degree murder, first-degree robbery and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon. According to trial testimony, Sonam and a co-defendant, Caleb Ahn, 19, were sitting inside a parked car in front of a restaurant on Northern Boulevard just before midnight on March 16, 2011. Sonam and Ahn were negotiating the purchase of a quantity of marijuana from two other Queens men—Chris Song and Bernard Cho—who were in the vehicle when Song was allegedly pistol whipped by Sonam and then fled the vehicle, running into the restaurant where he was shot once in the back by Sonam. Ahn then allegedly jumped into the vehicle’s driver’s seat and, in his haste to get away, rammed the vehicle into a van, at which point Cho attempted to flee the vehicle, but was shot five times by Sonam and Ahn and later died. The two defendants then allegedly picked up a briefcase that Cho was carrying and fled the location. Ahn’s case is pending trial.
Silverman said Sonam has a strong case for appeal.
“There were many violations of the rules concerning discovery,” he said. “The prosecution failed to turn over exculpatory material in a timely manner.”
By Michael V. Cusenza
