A chaotic clash between pro-Palestinian protestors and NYPD cops ended with 19 adults and three juveniles charged, officials said Sunday.
The Saturday evening protest on Fifth Ave. near 72nd St. in Bay Ridge, an enclave for a large Arab population in the city, marked the second time in as many days that police took pro-Palestinian demonstrators into custody.
Videos posted on social media show cops arresting several protesters, including one 30-second clip that shows an NYPD officer appearing to punch a demonstrator.
Jeff Bachner/New York Daily News
A chaotic clash between pro-Palestinian protestors and NYPD officers Saturday night ended with 19 adults and three juveniles taken into custody.
“During the course of a planned protest for which a permit was not attained, officers encountered a mostly peaceful crowd,” an NYPD spokesperson said. “Some demonstrators within the crowd chose to act in a combative and aggressive manner. Officers were pushed, shoved, and struck by some demonstrators within the crowd after the LRAD (long-range acoustic device) device was utilized.”
“Officers were struck with flying debris which included eggs, fireworks, and bottles. Officers responded to this disruptive behavior and attempted to regain order by taking into custody those responsible for these actions. In the course of doing so, the officer seen in the video is reacting to active resistance by criminals within the crowd. The NYPD encourages peaceful protests but will not condone our officers being subjected to any form of violence.”
Ten men and six women were issued summonses for disorderly conduct. Two men, ages 29 and 18, and a woman, 19, received desk appearance tickets for charges including resisting arrest and disorderly conduct, according to an NYPD spokesman.
Two minors were given juvenile reports, while a third got a summons.
The protest was organized by a group called Within Our Lifetime, called for an end to airstrikes on civilians in Gaza and for a halt to U.S. funding for the Israeli military.
On Friday, hundreds of pro-Palestinian protestors gathered in Midtown to demand a ceasefire in the war. Cops took 139 of them into custody for blocking traffic and later released them with disorderly conduct summonses, according to the NYPD.
Dozens of people are believed to have been arrested following an intense day of pro-Palestine protests in New York on Saturday.
Demonstrators demanding an end to attacks by the Isarael Defense Forces that have killed civilians in Palestine took to the streets in the Bay Ridge area of Brooklyn and as the protest continued into the night several people were arrested by the New York Police Department (NYPD), according to clips from the scene.
The demonstrations came as Israel announced it would intensify its strikes on the Gaza Strip and that it continues to prepare for a ground assault. Saturday marked two weeks of fighting between Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants and Israeli forces following surprise attacks on Israel on October 7 in which hundreds were killed and taken hostage. Strikes by Israel have rained down on the Gaza Strip since. As of Thursday, October 19, 3,785 civilians have been killed in Gaza, according to a report by Reuters.
Posting on X, formerly Twitter, the Palestinian-led community organization Within Our Lifetime advertised the rally on what it called the National Day of Action for Gaza. It urged people to take to the streets to collectively demand “an end to U.S.-sponsored genocide in Gaza.” Thousands of people turned out to show their support.
People rally in support of Palestinians in Brooklyn, New York, on October 21, 2023, amid ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas. The war is now entering its third week with thousands of civilians killed. Kena Betancur/GETTY
Videos taken by ABC7 Eyewitness News show tensions ramping up between police officers and demonstrators, with officers pushing back protesters and “ordering them out of the roadway.”
The clips show all manner of people, including Orthodox Jews, coming together to demand an end to the bloodshed in the Middle East. While the day appears to have started off peacefully, by nightfall relations between marchers and police broke down with a number of people being detained.
According to ABC7 Eyewitness News, more than a dozen people have been arrested in this particular wave of demonstrations. Charges brought against protesters, if any, are not known by Newsweek at this time.
A video posted on X by pro-Palestine group the Flame of Liberation shows a demonstrator being taken into a police van. The woman is lifted from the ground and taken into an NYPD vehicle by several officers. Onlookers can be heard disagreeing with the police, booing and shouting at the NYPD presence.
Another clip posted from the same account shows a different woman being hauled by two officers toward a police van. She can be heard screaming while onlookers again call for the woman to be released. A man is also taken to the same van by officers without resisting.
Vicious police just arrested about 20 protesters at the Palestine protest in Bay Ridge Brooklyn.
— The Flame of Liberation ⭐️🔥 (@FOL_Liberation) October 22, 2023
Elsewhere in the city, more than 130 anti-war protesters were arrested after blocking traffic on 5th Avenue in Manhattan on Friday night. Demonstrators called on New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand to endorse a ceasefire, chanting outside her office and denouncing the deaths of innocent civilians.
A video posted by the New York branch of the Democratic Socialists of America shows a line of people surrounded by officers. Many of them seem to be handcuffed with their hands behind their back. They did not appear to be resisting arrest, and the reason for them being detained is unclear.
Newsweek has contacted the NYPD for clarification and comment via email.
A group from NKUSA (Neturei Karta—Orthodox Jews United Against Zionism) stand in support of Palestinians in Brooklyn, New York, on October 21, 2023. Marchers from a variety of communities gathered in the borough for the march. Kena Betancur/GETTY/AFP
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
An on-duty NYPD sergeant accused of driving drunk to work was found in a Queens Internal Affairs Bureau office stripped down to his underwear and swaying unsteadily on his feet moments after he clocked in, prosecutors said Saturday.
Sgt. Braulio Aponte, who joined IAB last month, was discovered in a third floor office on Northern Blvd. near 31st St. by his supervisor about 1:50 p.m. Wednesday.
The IAB have an office in the Northern Blvd. building, which also houses a New York City Criminal Justice Agency supervised release office, officials said.
“I f—- up!” the clearly inebriated Aponte said, admitting to his lieutenant that he had drank alcohol before showing up at work and that he drove to work intoxicated, according to a criminal complaint filed with the Queens District Attorney’s office.
Cops located Aponte’s Honda in a parking garage next to the office building, and found an open bottle of Tequila on the floor of the car’s rear passenger seat.
Surveillance video taken from the garage showed Aponte driving into the parking garage and walking to his office. It was not clear why he was only in his underwear when his lieutenant found him.
Cops charged Aponte with drunk driving. He was ordered released without bail during a brief arraignment hearing on Thursday.
Aponte, 40, a 13-year veteran, was suspended without pay, cops said.
A man wearing a matching hoodie and baseball cap with the letters “XA” repeatedly printed on them is wanted for stabbing a man with a broken bottle during an unprovoked Staten Island attack, police said Wednesday.
The 50-year-old victim was inside the Deja Vu sports bar on Port Richmond Ave. near Post Ave. in Port Richmond about 12:05 a.m. Monday when the suspect, who is believed to be in his 20s, struck him in the face with a glass bottle, cops said.
The suspect then grabbed one end of the broken bottle and jammed it into the back of the victim’s head before running off down Port Richmond Ave., witnesses told police.
The victim suffered deep cuts to his face and head as well as a broken nose, police said. He was taken to an area hospital where he was treated and released.
He claimed that he never saw his attacker before nor didn’t know why he was targeted.
Cops on Wednesday released surveillance video of the attacker taken at a nearby deli in the hopes that someone recognizes him.
On the night of the attack, the man was wearing a white hoodie and baseball hat. The letters “XA” were printed on the hat as well as the arms of the hoodie, police said.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is urged to call NYPD Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS. All calls will be kept confidential.
NEW YORK — There was a celebration of Hispanic heritage at One Police Plaza on Tuesday.
The event was a collaboration between the NYPD Hispanic Society and New York Dominican Officers.
Members of the NYPD’s Hispanic community were honored for their accomplishments in the department.
Among those honored was Sgt. Special Assignment Carlos Nieves, who was recognized for his 33 years of service, including 17 years as a spokesperson for the department.
Actor Luis Guzman was also honored for his charitable work in the city.
NEW YORK — A 13-year-old boy was stabbed on an MTA bus and later died Friday on Staten Island.
We know a 14-year-old boy is now in police custody.
It happened just after 2:30 p.m. as the bus was on Hyland Boulevard near Littlefield Avenue.
Witnesses say a 13-year-old boy was riding the bus when another teenager got on, and the two started yelling at each other.
“Witnesses state there’s an argument on a bus. A knife is produced, and gang signs were being shown back and forth,” NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell said.
The second teenager then allegedly stabbed the 13-year-old in the chest.
“The other kid who got stabbed was sitting on the bus with us, like a few seats ahead of us, and the other kid walks in and they started yelling at each other. I guess they knew each other, had beef or something. And he walked over, pulled a knife out of his pocket, grabbed him and started stabbing him. They started like wrestling back and forth, and just kept stabbing him and stabbing him until he left the bus and ran off,” said another teen who was on the bus.
According to witnesses, the victim then stumbled off the bus, calling for help.
“He screamed, ‘Help, someone call the cops, I can’t breathe,’” the teenage witness said.
The assailant took off running.
“He was very fidgety and he kept staring back down and looking all around and dipping, then he made a left,” witness Anthony Esemplaire said.
The NYPD says two passersby, a state environmental conservation officer and a retired NYPD sergeant, tracked the 14-year-old suspect down before police arrived.
“The retired sergeant starts to follow the male who did the stabbing. At this time, another witness points him out and says, ‘This person just stabbed somebody,’ and the sergeant effects the arrest,” Chell said.
The victim was rushed to a local hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries. He has been identified as Syles Ular, of Staten Island.
Investigators scoured the scene for evidence Friday and are reviewing video from on-board cameras.
The MTA says the bus driver is traumatized.
“He’s broken up right now from what he experienced,” said Demetrius Crichlow, with the MTA.
“This is one of the safest neighborhoods. I’ve never seen anything like this go on,” Esemplaire said.
Police believe the motive for this stabbing may be gang-related.
Ali Bauman joined CBS2 News as a general assignment reporter in 2016. Ali is a proud millennial who embraces social media for storytelling to bring news to a new generation of viewers.
An internal department memo shared with the Daily News announced the reassignment of 53 high-ranking officers, including three assistant chiefs and 19 deputy chiefs.
The new assignments are expected to go into effect Thursday, according to the memo.
Positions being swapped include commanding officer spots at the counter terrorism division, the intelligence division, and the Bronx, Brooklyn North, Manhattan South, Queens North and Queens South detective squads, the memo indicates.
Caban became acting commissioner July 1 and was formally named commissioner on July 17.
Sewell battled a persistent belief at police headquarters and in City Hall that Mayor Adams, a former NYPD captain, and Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Philip Banks, a former chief of department, called most of the shots.
Kia TikTok Challenge
Barry Williams for New York Daily News
Mayor Adams and former NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewell. (Barry Williams for New York Daily News)
The personnel moves are part of a long-standing NYPD practice in which each new commissioner shapes the department’s leadership team to their liking. In the interim, department heads hold their breath, waiting to see if they’ll be transferred.
“We are all put on ice just waiting for the mid-level supervisory changes,” a high-ranking police source told The News. “All this constant change is difficult because once you get in a groove, new bosses come in and change everything.”
These pivotal changes come with even more transfers as the commanders bring their own people to their new assignment, the source added.
“So a lot of people are waiting — not working on their jobs — until they got launched into a new assignment,” the source said. “Too much change too quickly is just impossible to handle.”
An email to the NYPD for comment about the transfers was not immediately returned.
Theodore Parisienne for New York Daily News
The most notable reassignment on the list was of Assistant Chief Judith Harrison, pictured, who was reassigned to head the Criminal Justice Bureau. (Theodore Parisienne for New York Daily News)
The most notable reassignment on the list was of Assistant Chief Judith Harrison, who has headed the department’s counter-terrorism division since March. Harrison was reassigned to head the Criminal Justice Bureau, where she will be in charge of officers who assist court officers in borough criminal courts.
Harrison made history in 2020 when she was appointed to run the NYPD’s Brooklyn North command — the first woman to ever hold the lofty position. She was also at one time put in charge of the NYPD Special Victim’s Division, where she oversaw major investigations into rape and sexual assault cases.
One NYPD source said Harrison’s new assignment isn’t a demotion in rank but certainly one in prestige.
As NYPD divisions go, the Criminal Justice Bureau doesn’t affect the general public. Many officers in the bureau are cops who have been stripped of their gun and shield and transferred from their commands after being accused of some kind of misconduct, the source said, adding that these officers are kept at the courthouse jails to keep them off the streets.
“It’s definitely a smack in the face,” the source said of Harrison’s transfer.
Another move involves Deputy Chief Scott Shanley, who was transferred from the NYPD’s Critical Response Command to the Communications Division.
The move comes about three weeks after Shanley caused a minor panic by sending out a memo to his officers informing them that the department wanted to cut the Critical Response Command — the “first lines of defense against a terror-related attack” he wrote — by 75%.
The department said at the time that there were no immediate plans to gut the CRC but added that the department “regularly reviews personnel allocations and considers bolstering resources in various areas whenever it is deemed advantageous to our public safety mission.”
At least one of the reassigned members will be returning to the police-side of the department after spending nearly 20 years working with an FBI joint task force. Deputy Inspector George Pietropinto, a 33-year veteran, will be moved to the NYPD’s Special Investigation Division.
After Caban was made NYPD commissioner he asked several high-ranking chiefs to put in their resignations, including former Chief of Detectives James Essig, Assistant Chief Christopher McCormack of the Criminal Enterprise Division, and Chief of Transportation Kim Royster.
NYPD detectives are hunting for Lenue Moore after the Friday murder of Jacqueline Billini, 57, and Levaugh Harvin, 42, NBC 4 reported.
A wanted poster with Moore’s mugshot has been circulating around Washington Heights as cops continue to track the suspect down.
Police investigate after two people and a dog were fatally shot on W. 164th St. and Edgecombe Ave. in Washington Heights Friday. (Gardiner Anderson for New York Daily News)
Billini and Harvin were walking their dogs past Highbridge Park along Edgecombe Ave. near W. 165th St. when a man clad in black stormed up and shot them both in the head about 6:30 p.m., police said.
Billini’s pit bull, Zeus, was also shot dead before the gunman ran off, cops said. Harvin’s dog wasn’t harmed.
Harvin’s two children were walking ahead of the dog walkers and witnessed the shooting, Luis Billini, Jacqueline’s nephew, told the Daily News.
“(Harvin’s) kids were walking in front and they heard the shots and saw them dropping,” Luis said.
Harvin and Billini died at the scene.
Lenue Moore (NYPD)
“She had a heart of gold and touched the lives of everyone she encountered,” Billini’s daughters Nathalie and Iliana wrote on a GoFundMe post seeking donations for the state court employee’s burial costs. “Jackie was always there for her friends and family, offering unwavering support and love. Her sudden departure has left a void in our family and community that can never be filled.”
Detectives quickly linked the double killing to Moore, a neighbor of Billini who was arrested following a harrowing incident April 11, when he kicked in the door of Billini’s apartment armed with a hammer and attacked her and her family.
“He lived next door. He had mental issues from what the DA said,” Luis Billini said. “He’s not even on that lease, it’s under his parents name.”
“The guy is a bad individual, he disrespects the elderly,” he added. “Elderly is someone you supposed to respect. You respect women, children, the elderly.”
Moore was upset over constant barking coming from Billini’s W. 163rd St. apartment, Billini’s relatives say. Besides Zeus, Billini had two other dogs — Blue, who is Zeus’ mom, and Zina.
Police investigate after two people and a dog were fatally shot on W. 164th St. and Edgecombe Ave. in Washington Heights Friday. (Gardiner Anderson for New York Daily News)
The April attack was caught on video. According to court documents, when Moore kicked in Billini’s door it slammed into her so hard it broke her right arm.
Billini’s relatives rushed over to hold the door shut but the neighbor continued to kick the door in, swiping at them with a hammer when the door opened wide enough, the video shows.
“There was four people at the door and he was still able to muscle through,” Luis Billini said. “He’s a big guy, like 290 pounds. You can tell by the video he’s a strong man.”
Two of Billini’s relatives were struck with the hammer but weren’t seriously injured, prosecutors said.
Moore, 31, was arrested and released on $5,000 bail after arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court.
He was later indicted by a Manhattan grand jury on charges of burglary and assault with a weapon with intent to injure, among other charges. A judge authorized orders of protection for Billini and her family, forcing him to move out of the building, Luis said.
Moore moved in with a friend a few blocks away, relatives said.
Police investigate after two people and a dog were fatally shot on W. 164th St. and Edgecombe Ave. in Manhattan, on Friday, September 29, 2023. (Gardiner Anderson for New York Daily News)
“The dogs didn’t even attack (Moore),” Luis added. “They’re friendly so like why would he get crazy about them?”
Months after the attack in her apartment, Jacqueline Billini still felt menaced, friends and relatives said.
During one recent nightly walk with Zeus, someone drove up to Billini and told her “You’re going to die,” Luis said.
A friend of Jacqueline Bellini said Harvin had been accompanying her on her walks for the past two or three weeks as an informal bodyguard.
Harvin “was like family to her,” said the friend, Janet Santana.
“She was a nice neighbor — she was the best neighbor. She had no problems with anyone.”
Billini worked as an analyst for the state court system in the Bronx and was close to retirement, her nephew said.
“She worked 25 to 30 years with the government and then this happens,” he said.
“It’s impossible for someone who served our country for 25 years to be done like this. A woman who was about to retire shouldn’t have to live that way, just constantly watching over her shoulder. It’s ridiculous.”
A man with a toy Revolutionary War-style flintlock pistol was arrested after he tried to pass himself off as a police officer at a Bronx train station, cops said Saturday.
Gilbert Melendez, 65, was standing outside the St. Lawrence Ave. No. 6 subway station near Westchester Ave. in Soundview about 1 p.m. Thursday when cops spotted a collapsible baton used by law enforcement hanging from his pants pocket.
When the officers stepped up to him and inquired about it, Melendez said he was a cop from “Washington City,” but had no credentials to prove that he was a police officer.
Cops searched Melendez, finding the fake flintlock pistol in a holster in his pocket. He also had three police shields — all fake.
“Don’t think the Bronx has seen a pistol like this since we fought the redcoats at Pell’s Point,” NYPD Transit Chief Michael Kemper tweeted Saturday, referring to the Oct. 1776 Bronx battle between the Continental Army and the British. “Nevertheless, this & an assortment of police ‘credentials’ & equipment is what Transit officers found on a man claiming to be a law enforcement official outside a Bronx subway station.”
Melendez was charged with weapons possession for the baton and for criminal impersonation.
He was released without bail following a brief arraignment at Bronx Criminal Court on Friday, according to court records.
NEW YORK — There was a shocking discovery at an East Harlem day care.
Authorities said Wednesday they recovered ghost guns and 3D printers in an unlocked room inside Alay’s Day Care on East 117th Street between Park and Madison avenues. Three people were arrested, including an 18-year-old and two minors.
Police made the terrifying discovery after executing a search warrant.
Illegally manufactured ghost guns and the 3D printers used to make them were found. The NYPD said it executed three search warrants Tuesday. The third led to the seizure.
“Inside this day care facility, investigators recovered a 3D printer, 3D printing cools and plastic filament, two completed 3D-printed firearms, one 3D-printed assault pistol, and one additional 3D-printed receiver,” NYPD Deputy Commissioner Of Intelligence and Counterterrorism Rebecca Weiner said.
“Charges will include illegal firearms possession, manufacturing of an assault weapon, and reckless endangerment,” Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said.
“This is a heartbreaking scenario: Thinking that you’re dropping your child off to a place of safe haven just to find out that it was a dangerous environment where someone was making a gun inside,” Mayor Eric Adams said. “Who would’ve thought that we must add to our list of inspections — Do we have 3D printers that can print guns? Do we see the presence of various items like fentanyl and other items?”
Of those arrested, one was 18-year-old Karon Coley. Police said Coley lives in the home with his mother, who owns and operates the day care center. Police wouldn’t comment on whether Coley’s mother will face charges as the investigation is ongoing.
“You’ve got an 18-year-old in his room, 3D printer. He’s not making little robotic toys — he’s making guns. That should be scary to everyone,” Adams said.
“Unfortunately, a child had to die for us to really have to pay attention to what is happening in day care centers,” Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark said.
In her first interview since 1-year-old Nicholas Dominici’s death, Clark told CBS New York attending his funeral has made the case personal.
“I turned around and there was a tiny coffin there with such an incredibly adorable young man, little boy dead, I can’t take that. It was unacceptable. I was so emotional, and I’m the DA. I’m supposed to show strength, but I’m also human and to see a little 1-year-old baby in a coffin, to see that makes it even more of a priority to make sure we get justice for him.”
When asked what justice will look like for the baby’s family, Clark said, “Justice means the people responsible for this spend the rest of their lives in jail. That’s what the family wants. That’s what I’m gonna be seeking.”
Mayor Adams said he believes changes need to be made to the day care inspection process, and did not rule out the possibility that the NYPD may step in going forward.
“There’s an extensive process already in place. But we are dealing with a new enemy. And we have to stay ahead of those who are finding creative ways to create dangerous environments,” Adams said.
Department of Health officials said the East Harlem day care has been open since 2021. The last inspection it did was in February of this year. It said the owners were cited for health and hygiene issues, but took corrective action.
Adams is leading a formal analysis and assessment of what inspectors can look for at day care centers going forward, and what warning signs parents can look for, themselves.
A 34-year-old woman was stabbed to death inside a Brooklyn apartment early Wednesday, police said.
Cops called to the 14th-floor Starrett City apartment found the victim sprawled on the floor suffering from multiple stab wounds about 6:15 a.m. She died at the scene.
The victim’s name was not immediately released.
A 31-year-old man found inside the apartment on Pennsylvania Ave. near Geneva Loop when cops arrived was taken into custody for questioning.
A bloody knife was recovered from the scene, police said.
A beloved 81-year-old Staten Island man butchered by an unhinged neighbor was remembered Saturday as the “grandfather” of the block as residents tried to wrap their minds around the bloody melee that ended his life.
“It’s heartbreaking. The guy never harmed a fly,” one resident of Sunnyside Terrace said of Frank Pompilii, who was stabbed to death by a longtime neighbor during a bloody clash Friday night. “Frank was friends with everybody.”
Pompilii was repeatedly stabbed in the neck in the body down the block from his home on Sunnyside Terrace, a bucolic, tree-lined street near Grand Ave. in Sunnyside during the 4:40 p.m. clash Friday.
It’s believed Pompilii was trying to break up a fight between three other neighbors — identified by residents as Redzep (Richie) Cobaj, 78, his son Skender Cobaj, 51, and Ramazan Ramusevic, 57 — when Ramusevic began stabbing the two older men, block residents said.
Cops responding to the scene found the elder Cobaj outside, suffering from multiple stab wounds. Entering the home, they found Ramusevic, a bloody knife still in his hand.
The officers tased and disarmed Ramusevic before taking him into custody. During his arrest, he admitted to stabbing another man. Pompilii was found stabbed in the neck and body a short distance away.
Gardiner Anderson for New York Daily News
Police on Saturday were still trying to determine what sparked the bloody carnage. In this photo, police investigate after three people were stabbed on Sunnyside Terrace near Clove Road in Staten Island on Sept. 22, 2023.
He died at the scene.
Skender Cobaj was also at the home, suffering from a cut to his hand he received defending his father, cops and neighbors said.
Redzep Cobaj remained hospitalized in critical condition.
“He was with a cane, he was almost 80 years old,” the resident, who wished not to be named, said of Cobaj. “If he got stabbed it’s going to be hard for him to survive.”
On Saturday, a line of mourners was seen going in and out of Pompilii’s home, where he and his wife of 56 years raised two children and six grandchildren.
“It’s our grandpa,” one mourner said to reporters in hushed tones outside Pompilii’s home as a bird feeder swayed in the rain outside.
Pompilii was an “old school Italian guy” everyone on Sunnyside Terrace loved, resident Ron Romano said.
“(He) was kind of the nicest neighbor on the block,” Romano said. “He would clean up the street. He was a wonderful person.”
Ramusevic has a history of mental health problems. He was hospitalized at Richmond University Medical Center in March for a psychiatric issue and sued the hospital in June for medical records after he injured himself during an unsuccessful escape from the hospital, according to court documents.
The alleged stabber once owned a pizzeria nearby but was always standoffish to neighbors, residents said.
In fact, the only people he seemed to get along with was Pompilii and Redzep Cobaj, neighbors said.
Gardiner Anderson for New York Daily News
Ramusevic was recently hospitalized at Richmond University Medical Center for a psychiatric issue. In this photo, Police investigate after three people were stabbed on Sunnyside Terrace near Clove Road in Staten Island on Sept. 22, 2023.
“They were always talking to each other, these three,” the neighbor said. “They were always hanging out and talking, they knew each other very well.”
Police on Saturday were still trying to determine what sparked the bloody carnage.
“Even the detectives were like ‘We have no idea, we literally don’t know why he did it,’” said one neighbor, who would only identify herself as Christina. “I heard (Pompilii) was going to visit his neighbor, and they were attacked by the other neighbor.”
The NYPD announced Thursday that investigators have found a trap door with a secret compartment in the playroom of a New York City day care where a toddler died and several more children were sickened after being exposed to fentanyl last week. Two people, including the woman who ran the day care, have been arrested in the case.
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Ten people were arrested when a protest over migrants being housed on Staten Island ended in a violent clash with cops, police said Wednesday.
One of the protesters faces an assault charge while the other nine were given summonses for disorderly conduct following the Tuesday night protest at Father Capodanno Blvd and Midland Ave. in Midland Beach, cops said.
A busload of asylum seekers were being sent to the Island Shores Assisted Living Facility when protesters blocked the path to the former assisted living facility, cops said.
Responding officers ordered the demonstrators to move out of the way but they refused, sparking a stand-off.
Cops stepped in and dragged demonstrators from the street. A cop suffered a knee injury when 48-year-old Vadim Dlyakov, who lives down the block from the assisted living facility, put up a fight, cops said.
Dylakov was charged with assaulting a police officer, resisting arrest and obstructing government administration. His arraignment in Staten Island Criminal Court was pending Wednesday.
Eight men and one woman were taken into custody and let go with disorderly conduct summonses that they will have to answer in court at a later date.
Protesters have also picketed outside of Gracie Mansion as more than 110,000 migrants have come to New York City over the last several months.
About 10,000 migrants are making their way to New York a month, which is becoming an untenable burden on the city, which has to shelter and care for them as they get on their feet, Mayor Adams recently said.
That’s because of the amount of drugs found. In fact, authorities said they found enough fentanyl to kill 500,000 people.
Three other kids were hospitalized after being exposed to fentanyl that was allegedly being processed at the site in the Bronx.
Police said they found a kilogram of fentanyl in a hallway closet at the day care, stacked on top of children’s play mats. They also said they found three kilo press machines, which are used to package drugs.
Federal officials held a news conference to discuss the federal charges Tuesday. We brought that news conference to you live on CBS News New York.
“This case is different. We allege the defendants poisoned four babies, and killed one of them, because they were running a drug operation from a day care center. A day care center – a place where children should be kept safe, not surrounded by a drug that can kill them in an instant,” U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said.
Williams said Grei Mendez tried to cover up the fentanyl operation before calling emergency responders. Mendez and her husband’s cousin Carlisto Acevedo Brito, who was renting a bedroom at the day care, are under arrest on murder and drug charges. They now face federal charges of conspiracy to distribute narcotics resulting in death and possession with intent to distribute narcotics resulting in death.
Williams said the federal charges carry a range of 20 years to life in prison.
Investigators said evidence proves Mendez and Brito were active participants in the drug-running scheme.
“As alleged in the complaint, before emergency personnel arrived at the day care, before they arrived, Mendez and a co-conspirator tried to cover up what happened. Seconds before Mendez called 911, she called a co-conspirator. Minutes later, a co-conspirator arrived at the day care. Minutes later, he left the day care and fled out the back alley, carrying two full shopping bags. And all of that happened while the children, the babies, were suffering from the effects of fentanyl poisoning and in desperate need of help,” Williams said.
“In my 32 years of government service, 25 of which has been spent serving with the DEA, there is no more devastating news or tragedy than the loss of a child, and every New Yorker should be outraged by this senseless tragedy,” DEA Special Agent in Charge Frank Tarentino said.
Officers are searching for Mendez’s husband, who’s described in court records as a co-conspirator.
Williams was asked how confident they were they would find the co-conspirator.
“We’re going to get him,” Williams said.
Investigators say as Mendez was talking to officers she messaged her husband that police were asking about him and suggested he find a lawyer.
Police also searched Brito’s phone. They said Brito received messages in August and September that they believe were related to the distribution of drugs from the day care.
When questioned by detectives, both Brito and Mendez denied having any knowledge of the drugs.
The criminal complaint also says Mendez deleted more than 21,500 messages from an app on which she communicated with her husband between March of 2021 and this month.
Fentanyl is “the most urgent threat in our nation”
Tarentino said more 110,000 Americans have died as a result of drug poisoning.
“Fentanyl is a killer. Fentanyl crept into our illicit drug supply like a cancer, slowly and deceptively, and it is now in everything, everywhere, killing victims instantly and indiscriminately. Fentanyl is the most urgent threat in our nation and the tragedy that unfolded in the Bronx at the Divino Nino day care center demonstrates the danger that fentanyl poses to every New Yorker,” Tarentino said.
“This is a tragedy, and my heart breaks for the children and their families. But I promise you this: We’re going to keep fighting for justice, in this case and every other case involving this deadly poison,” Williams said. “I also have a message for anyone out there who is selling fentanyl: Stop pushing this poison. It kills. It ruins lives, and it will ruin yours too when we catch you, convict you, and send you to federal prison.”
Williams called fentanyl a “public health crisis.”
“I’m a lawyer, I’m the United States Attorney here, but I’m a father,” Williams said. “Common sense dictates when you drop off your baby, you expect the baby to be kept safe. I don’t think there’s any other way to look at it other than it being incredibly reckless, one of the most reckless things that a human can do, to endanger the life of a child like that.”
We also have new photos of what police said are drugs and paraphernalia from inside the day care.
Federal authorities say this picture shows a kilgoram of fentanyl found at Divino Nino day care, where toddler Nicholas Dominici died.
U.S Attorney’s Office
The pictures show what is allegedly a kilo of fentanyl and a kilo press.
Authorities said this is a kilo press device found at Divino Nino day care in the Bronx, where toddler Nicholas Dominici died.
U.S Attorney’s Office
Watch: Adams blasts fentanyl problem after Bronx day care death
City officials defended their inspectors, who had given the center the OK days earlier.
“I’m very sorry, but one of the things my child care inspectors are not trained to do is look for fentanyl. But maybe we need to start,” said New York City Health Commissioner Dr. Ashwin Vasan.
“That little piece, that little corner, about less than the size of a fingernail. A tenth of a size of a fingernail can kill an adult. So imagine what it could do to a child,” said Mayor Eric Adams, highlighting the drug’s potency.
A woman wielding a heavy bag swung it at an 88-year-old stranger, clobbering him in the head in an unprovoked attack on a Manhattan street, police said Sunday.
The woman approached the victim from behind on 10th Ave. near W. 26th St. about 8:15 a.m. Sept. 10 and used a blunt object in a bag to bludgeon the victim, police said.
She ran off uptown on 10th Ave., police said.
Medics took the victim to Lenox Health Greenwich Village in stable condition, cops said.
NYPD/DCPI
This woman wielding a heavy bag swung it at an 88-year-old man and clobbered him in the head in an apparently unprovoked Chelsea attack, police said Sunday.
Police released surveillance footage of the suspect Sunday and are asking the public’s help identifying her and tracking her down.
Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS. All calls will be kept confidential.
Robert Bryson, a 65-year-old ex-con, was returned to the city Tuesday following his Aug. 22 arrest in Cleveland, where he had been living. He was charged with the July 18, 2020 shooting death of Nicholas Isaac, 23, at a Crown Heights bike shop.
Isaac was affiliated with the Bloods, police said, and his slaying is believed to be linked to gangs and drugs.
Video released by the NYPD at the time shows the shooter stalking the victim inside Fly E-bike, a bike and scooter shop on Nostrand Ave. near Bergen St. The footage cuts away before the shooting, though the gunman can later be seen fleeing on a scooter.
The victim and the gunman got into an argument outside the store, police said, with Isaac running into the shop when he was shot at and trying to close the door behind him.
NYPD
The footage cuts away before the fatal shooting, and the killer can be seen zooming down a nearby sidewalk on a scooter, pictured here.
But Isaac was struck in the legs and upper body — and then refused to cooperate with police when he was asked who shot him and why. Medics rushed Isaac to Kings County Hospital, where he died.
Bryson was identified as the suspected gunman a day later and eventually tracked to Cleveland.
The suspect has 11 New York City arrests on his record, including one for attempted murder in 1985. Records show he served three years in state prison, ending in November 1980, following a weapon possession conviction in Brooklyn.
Jeff Bachner/New York Daily News
A shell casing covered by a red plastic cup remains on the pavement as NYPD officers and detectives gather evidence and interview witnesses on Nostrand Avenue in East New York where a man was shot, Saturday, July 18, 2020.
Isaac, who lived in Clinton Hill, had one prior arrest for rape and one for felony criminal mischief, police said.
A relative at a small memorial set up on the stoop of the victim’s home after the murder called him a “good kid.”
Family of an aspiring model shot in the head following a weekend argument over parking at a Brooklyn Home Depot are praying she pulls through as doctors are forced to wait to perform surgery.
The bullet remained lodged 26-year-old Imani Sharpless’ head as on Monday evening, and intense swelling around the wound has to subside before an operation can happen, according to a relative.
“They can’t take the bullet out until the swelling goes down in the brain,” uncle Patrick Sharpless said as the victim remained in critical condition since Saturday’s senseless shooting.
“We can’t do nothing but pray,” he told the Daily News. “God is taking care of her.”
Sharpless’s uncle, a North Carolina pastor who’s been in close contact with her immediate family, said that doctors are unsure whether his niece’s wounds will result in lasting paralysis.
“We just have to make sure she’s not paralyzed or anything like that,” he said.
Imani Sharpless was riding shotgun in 36-year-old boyfriend Cordel McDuffie’s white Hyundai Sonata at the Bedford-Stuyvesant Home Depot on the corner of Dekalb and Nostrand Aves. shortly after noon when the couple started feuding with another man over a parking spot, McDuffie told ABC7 New York.
Theodore Parisienne for New York Daily News
Imani Sharplesswas rushed to the hospital in critical condition after she was shot in the head while seated in a Hyundai Sonata outside the Bed-Stuy Home Depot on Saturday.
“He was trying to go into a space, I pulled up behind the guy, he had to back up and I was impeding on him trying to back up,” McDuffie said. “I didn’t realize it, I blew my horn and we exchanged words.”
Witnesses previously told The News they overheard McDuffie shouting that he had given up the disputed parking spot, only for the gunman to pull up beside the pair and unleash a hail of gunfire.
“The guy pulls on the side of them, he starts shooting at them,” said Stacee Glenn, 40, adding that McDuffie shouted, “I gave him the parking spot!” following the shooting.
Although he suffered gunshot wounds to the back and knee, McDuffie managed to maneuver his Hyundai out of the Home Depot parking lot, racing to the intersection of Nostrand and Myrtle Aves. a few blocks away before pulling over and pleading for help, according to witnesses.
A longtime neighbor of McDuffie’s described him as kindhearted and supportive, saying he would often volunteer to pitch in whenever she needed a helping hand.
Sharpless had been shot multiple times, including once in the head, and witnesses saw her slumped over and unconscious in the passenger seat.
“I look in the car and there’s blood dripping from her head,” said Yadelyn Pena, 14, who was at a Nostrand Ave. Duane Reade when a bloodied McDuffie pulled up beside her. “I saw her.”
Police confirmed that a Mercedes-Benz SUV spotted in the Home Depot parking lot with a Pennywise clown mask draped over the headrest of the front passenger seat is believed to belong to the shooter.
The gunman hightailed it down Nostrand Ave. following the shooting, where he was spotted sprinting south wearing a white shirt and red hat, according to police.
McDuffie said he was crestfallen that the tiff over a parking spot ballooned into an act of senseless violence.
“She’s one of the most beautiful people, she loves kids, full of life, just a good person,” he told ABC 7. “For this to be happening over something so minuscule — it’s overwhelming.”
Sharpless was attending school in the hopes of becoming a model and singer, according to her uncle.
She works as a teacher’s aide at an after-school program at a Brownsville elementary school, her friend Dandre Mckoy told The News.
A neighbor of McDuffie’s said he and Sharpless had been seeing each other for years and she believed the couple had been preparing to move in together prior to Saturday’s senseless shooting.
“They’ve been fixing up the apartment lately,” said the neighbor. “I see her coming in with him all the time.”
A surprise homecoming ended in a horror show for a 34-year-old MTA employee shot by a stray bullet outside the Brooklyn apartment complex where she grew up — a place she’s now “leery” about returning to, her father said Saturday.
“My daughter comes over here to see me — I didn’t know she was coming — and she gets shot!” retired MTA track worker Lawrence Doxen said about the Wednesday afternoon shooting at the Sumner Houses.
His daughter Shanay was about to visit Doxen, 66, when shots were fired at a group of men near a basketball court in the 95-degree heat by the corner of Marcus Garvey Blvd. near Park Ave. around 3:30 p.m.
A stray bullet tore through Shanay’s upper arm, her father said.
Doxen had just heard the shots and saw police cruisers out his window when someone began pounding on his door, he recalled.
“I see the cops out there. Next thing I know, five minutes later I hear Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!” he said.
At the same time, his daughter’s number popped up on his phone.
“I grab my phone and I kinda see my daughter’s name coming up here,” he recalled. “I was like, who’s knocking on my door? And I’m like, I’m not answering the door because I just heard the shots! Then the lady downstairs, she was like, ‘Dox Dox, your daughter got shot!’”
Kerry Burke
Suspects involved in the shooting of three men and a woman fled in the white Santa Fe Hyundai before crashing into a black Infinity around the corner from the crime scene on Sept. 6, 2023.
Doxen opened the door to find Shanay and the downstairs neighbor. His daughter was bleeding from her arm.
Despite her wound “she wanted to see me,” the retired MTA employee said. “She said, ‘I wanted to see my father.’”
The bullet passed through Shanay’s arm. The young mom, an MTA cleaner, is currently on the mend, her proud dad said.
“She’s good now. She’s kind of leery because we go to the park a lot,” he said. “She is in shock. That’s what people don’t think about. Trauma, you know?”
About six shots were fired, neighbors recalled. Three men ages 34, 26 and 21 were struck with shots to the back, stomach and chest, respectively, police said.
“There were shots and smoky pops,” the witness, a local man who gave his name as Jay, told the Daily News Wednesday. “There was a guy lying on the ground, he was on his back bleeding. His friend was kneeling, holding himself, he was shot in the buttocks. You could see the blood.”
The man shot in the stomach remained in critical condition Saturday, cops said. The other two men were expected to survive.
Police believe the gunman, who jumped out of a Hyundai Santa Fe, were targeting the three victims and accidentally hit Shanay with a stray round.
As the attackers sped off, they crashed into an Infiniti QX60.
The gunman jumped back into the car, which sped off and crashed head-on with a black Infiniti QX60 less than two blocks away near the corner of Myrtle and Throop Aves.
Cops hot on the heels of the suspects arrested three men at the scene after they had run into an area building.
Ben Foster, 30, who is believed to be the shooter, was charged with attempted murder and weapons possession as well as burglary and tampering with physical evidence. An accomplice, identified as Seven Jones, 23, was charged with burglary and tampering with physical evidence, cops said.
The arraignments for the two men were pending Saturday.
Shanay was just getting off of work when she decided to surprise her father with a visit, her dad said. She’ll be on medical leave for a while as she recovers, he said.
“She can’t work,” he said. “She’s a cleaner. She’s going to have to lift up garbage bags and hopefully there’s no nerve damage and stuff like that. So it’s going to be a while.”
The emotional scars may take longer, he said.
“It’s like a process right now. I still think she don’t really know what she really been through,” he said. “That’s what people forget when people get shot. The psychological effect.”
Cops have arrested the unhinged man wanted for brutally beating a 60-year-old woman with her own cane during a violent caught-on-camera clash at a Harlem subway station, police sources said.
Suspect Norton Blake, 43, was grabbed by police early Tuesday after he was spotted near the W. 116th St. 2/3 subway station in Harlem. He is currently being questioned, police said. Charges are pending.
His apprehension comes as the NYPD’s Internal Affairs Bureau investigates the police response to the 3:15 a.m. attack Friday, a police source with knowledge of the case said Friday. Cops called to the station by an MTA token booth clerk grabbed Blake at the scene, but he was not taken into custody.
Cops received conflicting statements as to what sparked the attack between Blake and his victim, an NYPD source with knowledge of the case said.
During the initial investigation, cops decided to have Blake, who was acting erratic, hospitalized without charges, but it wasn’t immediately clear if he was ever taken to one, the source said.
A second source said Blake was released at the scene.
The vicitm, who is homeless, was exiting the southbound 2/3 platform when Blake, swung what appears to be a black umbrella at her, a video of the attack that went viral shows.
The woman fights back and swings her wooden cane at Blake, who hooks the cane with his umbrella, pulling his victim down to the ground.
He then picks up the cane and starts whipping the woman with it as she struggles to get up, according to the three-and-a-half-minute video.
Blake is recorded screaming at the woman as he repeatedly whacks her with the cane.
“Now you learn!” yelled Blake who appeared to be carrying several garbage bags during the assault. “I was trying to be a brother to you! I help you walk up the stairs and you just happen to fall down.”
The entire ordeal was caught on video by an MTA station agent, who reported the incident to police, but didn’t leave the booth to intervene during the duration of the video, even though they are now allowed to step out of the booth and interact with commuters.
Blake, who has nine arrests dating back to 2003, hits the older woman with the cane 54 times as she lay on the ground, the video shows. His pants start to fall down as he continues his merciless assault.
The woman tried her best to deflect the blows with her feet as she tried to stand up, but was hit repeatedly in the head and body, cops said.
When the woman finally grabbed hold of what was left of the cane, Blake took off his belt and started whipping her with it, the video shows.
EMS rushed the woman to Harlem Hospital, where she was treated for minor injuries.
It was not immediately clear if the pair knew each other prior to the attack, according to Kemper. The two started to argue after Blake tried to help his victim with carrying her belongings.
“He might have been helping her carry something up the stairs and something dropped,” Kemper said.
