Category Archives: Crime
Peter Rodriguez pleaded guilty on Friday to charges that he killed Maspeth bar owner George Gibbons in a drunken, wrong-way collision on a Long Island Expressway service road in October. He will be sentenced on May 7 to three-and-a-half to seven years in prison for negligent homicide and leaving the scene of a crime without reporting it. Rodriguez, a 37-year-old Brooklyn resident, has been held without bail since his capture on Nov. 15—a month after the crash. He was … Continue reading
People who have had their iPhone stolen know it happens all too quickly. In less than a minute, they go from having their face buried in their phone, checking text messages or surfing the internet, to having it snatched out of their hands and never seeing it again. Police officers have been warning residents of a spike in robberies of Apple products, and trying to get the word out that there are things you can do to make sure the … Continue reading
Crime is a mixed bag in Forest Hills and Rego Park, with two crimes on the rise and two others seeing a decrease, according to the latest crime statistics from the 112th Precinct announced at April’s 112th Precinct Community Council meeting. Deputy Inspector Christopher Tamola, commanding officer of the 112th, first spoke about two anti-semitic graffiti incidents that happened over the past month. The most recent one occurred on Friday, April 13, when police found a spray-painted swastika and racial … Continue reading
A hit-and-run driver left 50-year-old Clifford Bishundat in critical condition Monday night after striking him near the intersection of Jamaica Avenue and Woodhaven Boulevard around 7 p.m. Bishundat was crossing the street when Ian Glasgow, 59, plowed into him and took off from the accident scene. A good Samaritan was able to stop Glasgow about four blocks away from the scene. Police apprehended the driver and administered a breathalyzer check, which did not show blood alcohol levels above the legal … Continue reading
A South Ozone Park man was sentenced to five to 10 years in prison last week for being a sex trafficker and forcing a female runaway under the age of 16 to prostitute herself around Queens. According to the Queens District Attorney, Michael Summerville, 33, of 135-50 128th St. in South Ozone Park, befriended the then 14-year-old victim in January 2010 after she ran away from home. Engaging in sexual activity with her, Summerville eventually pimped her out until she … Continue reading
Two Queens men have been charged in separate cases involving sex crimes, Queens District Attorney Richard Brown’s office announced on Thursday, April 19. The two men charged are Christopher Whitfield, who lived on 113th Avenue in Queens Village and Fernando Del Rio, who lived on Smart Street in Flushing. According to the district attorney, Whitfield, who is 24 years old, faces seven charges, including first-degree kidnapping, sex trafficking, second-degree promoting prostitution and second-degree assault. Del Rio, 41, faces five charges, … Continue reading
Police are asking for help identifying and finding the man who robbed and threatened to bomb a bank in Maspeth on the evening of Wednesday, April 18. According to police, a young man entered the Maspeth Federal Savings Bank at 56-18 69th St. at about 5:45 p.m. He walked up to a teller and handed over a note saying that he had a bomb and demanding money. The teller complied and handed the suspect an undisclosed amountof cash. The suspect … Continue reading
Police thwarted the attempted robbery of the CVS store at 68-03 Myrtle Ave. in Middle Village on Tuesday afternoon. An unidentified man was observed by store personnel as he tried to put on a ski mask. The suspect was lingering around the pharmacy area of the store, but did not announce a hold-up or make any demands for property of the store. Store personnel called police and Officer Marinacci and Sgt. Castro of the 104th Precinct arrested the man a … Continue reading
Police in the 104th Precinct are warning residents about a robbery pattern near the boarder of Middle Village and Rego Park. Captain Michael Cody, commanding officer of the 104th, said that this month near 80th Street and 60th Road in Middle Village, two robberies took place at around 5:30 p.m. The first was on April 5 and the second was just a week later. Speaking at the COP 104 meeting on Thursday, April 19, Cody said police believe a group … Continue reading
An off-duty NYPD recruit was arrested in his Rego Park home Saturday night after an alleged assault on his fiancé that left her bruised and with a broken nose. Police took 27-year-old Alexandru Baiasu into custody after they responded to a call at the Saunders Street home where the two live. There, his fiancé told officers that Baiasu had menaced her with his baton, threatened her repeatedly and physically abused her in front of their daughter and her own child. … Continue reading
This commercial vehicle has, once again, been illegally parking in a driveway at 61-26 71st Street in Middle Village. A reader e-mailed The Forum about this, saying that the owner of the van has been parking there again and that another of the owner’s commercial vehicles has been parked on the street every night. The Forum previously published a photo of this van back in February, and it didn’t have a license plate back then, either. The homeowner has previously … Continue reading
Police responded last week to anti-semitic graffiti found in Forest Hills on Friday, April 13 at the Grand Central service road by 64th Avenue and 64th Road. Someone had spray-painted a swastika and large racial slurs across the base of the overpass there. The images were reported at around 10 a.m. on April 13, when they were investigated and removed by the 112th Precinct. “I am utterly disgusted and angered at such expressions of hate and bigotry especially during the … Continue reading
Last Wednesday, April 12, at approximately 11 a.m., two police officers observed a 1998 Honda being driven in a reckless manner northbound on Cross Bay Boulevard near 164th Avenue. After following the vehicle several blocks down to 159th Avenue, the officers pulled the vehicle over. As the officers prepared to approach the car, the operator opened the door and fled across the boulevard. Additional officers in the vicinity observed the action taking place and after a short pursuit were able … Continue reading
Recent warm weather has brought out partiers, and with them come noise and parking headaches, attendees at the 102nd Precinct Community Council told precinct officials. At the council’s meeting on Tuesday night, Captain Martin Briffa, executive officer of the 102nd Precinct, heard a swath of complaints about noise and parties in Richmond Hill and Woodhaven. At least three residents complained about yelling and screaming in the dead of night and party noise and music blasting. Briffa encouraged attendees to call … Continue reading
Charlie Samuels, the former longtime clubhouse manager for the New York Mets, was sentenced this week for criminal possession of almost $2.3 million of on-field and game-used Mets memorabilia and collectibles. The merchandise included signed jerseys, bats and baseballs and belonged to the Mets organization. He also evaded City and State taxes. Samuels, a 55-year-old resident of Averene began his career with the mets in 1976 and by 1983 had worked his way up to equipment manager. Subsequently, he became … Continue reading