The boys, who police say are 16 and 17 years old, were swimming at Jacob Riis Park on Friday. Witnesses say they saw a huge wave overtake them and the two never resurfaced. Rescuers from FDNY deployed into the water after receiving an emergency call just after 6:00 p.m., but even the most experienced swimmers and divers were called back to shore.

The search continued for nearly five hours with marine units and fire boats, according to authorities.

Drones and helicopters deployed from Floyd Bennett Field circled the area Saturday morning. Officials vowed to find the boys in what is now a recovery effort.

The teens have not been identified and the NYPD said it’s unclear if they knew how to swim. NYPD Deputy Commissioner of Operations Kaz Daughtry added that the situation is a parent’s worst nightmare.

“We think that it may be a riptide, but that’s still under investigation,” Daughtry said Friday.

New details were shared by the man suspected in a violent sexual attack of a 13-year-old girl in a Queens park, as he admitted to having a drug problem and that he recorded the entire alleged assault, according to prosecutors.

Christian Inga faced a judge for the first time Wednesday as he faced a long list of charges including rape and kidnapping for the afternoon attack on June 13 in which he ambushed two teens at the popular Kissena Park after school, then forced them into the woods at knifepoint and tied them up before sexually assaulting the girl.

Inga was arrested in Corona Tuesday following a dayslong, city-wide manhunt. He was recognized by people in his neighborhood who took matters into their own hands, holding the 25-year-old down and belting his legs together as they waited for police.

Queens Jun 18

‘Come get him': Suspected Queens child rapist in custody after people recognize him, call 911

Queens Jun 14

NYPD offers $10,000 reward for ‘animal' who attacked 2 kids in Queens park after school

Queens Jun 14

Knife-wielding stranger forces two 13-year-olds into park woods in brazen NYC sex attack

“I told everybody yo this the rapist. I punched him. I kicked him. I ain’t gonna lie,” Jeffrey Flores told NBC New York on Tuesday.

He had recognized Inga from the NYPD wanted posters and decided to take some friends to wait at a bodega on 108th and Waldon streets where they knew he frequently stopped at. The group waited for hours before Inga showed up, and they went after him, according to sources, calling 911 to say, “Come get him.”

“He started yelling ‘help, help’ in Spanish. I was like ‘Yeah that’s what the little girl was saying,'” said Flores. “He really try to run, run, run for his life but he couldn’t.”

At one point, Flores says the man tried to hide underneath a car until officers arrived and took him into custody. Inga was in court Wednesday following a brief hospital stint to treat injuries delivered by the neighbors who captured and turned him in.

Flores said Inga didn’t deny the sexual assault allegations, a statement corroborated by a bodega worker in the store at the time.

According to investigators, the boy and girl were in a field in Kissena Park around 3 p.m., just after school let out for the day, when a curly-haired man with braces walked up and demanded they follow him into the woods. When they refused, police say he pulled out a “large machete-style knife” and forced them into an isolated area, where he bound each of their wrists with a shoelace. Then he sexually assaulted the 13-year-old girl.

The kids told cops the man warned them to stay where they were for 20 minutes. He then ran off with their phones. Once time was up, they returned to school and told administrators what happened. They called 911 immediately.

The children were taken to a hospital for treatment. A shoelace, possibly the one used to tie the children’s wrists, was recovered at the scene.

During his court appearance, prosecutors said Inga admitted to having a drug problem. In the same interview, he allegedly told police he saw the boy and girl near the woods and tied them together, gagged them and then assaulted the girl.

He told police he recorded the attack, but Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz would not answer any further questions about that detail, saying it is “under investigation.”

Echoing police’s words from a day ago, DA Katz commended the victims for helping police find him in the days after the attack that terrorized the community and shocked New Yorkers across the city.

“This attack on two children in broad daylight in a city park strikes the very core of our society,” said Katz.

Two senior police officials say Inga is an Ecuadorian national who arrived in New York City in 2021 after crossing the border in Eagle Pass, Texas, along with his then-3-year-old son. Inga, a father of two, was charged with rape, robbery, sexual assault, kidnapping, endangering child welfare and other counts.

Prosecutors said his immigration status was a major reason he was a flight risk, to which the judge agreed, ordering him held without bail. Inga requested additional medical attention for the bruises on his face. His next court appearance is scheduled for July.

If convicted, Inga faces 25 years to life in prison. His lawyer did not immediately comment. The Ecuadorian consulate did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

Police previously said Inga had no prior arrests in New York City but did have one arrest in Texas.

A Queens woman is facing multiple charges after police allegedly saw her attempting to sell puppies from what police described as a “sack” that was tied shut over the weekend.

According to the NYPD, on Saturday, shortly before 7 p.m., officers Lukasse Pusz and Brian Chan, who were in the field training unit of the 101 Precinct saw a woman trying to buy a puppy from another on the corner of Beach Channel Drive and Horton Avenue in Far Rockaway.

Allegedly, when the potential buyer asked if there were any other puppies for sale, the woman reached for a bag that was tied shut.

Pusz said the bag was so small it didn’t have any ventilation. When the officers intervened, the took hold of the sack and cut it open, discovering five pitbull puppies inside, covered in urine and condensation, the NYPD said.

“We found out they’re no more than 6 weeks so they didn’t have much life to even experience and they were being tortured,” Pusz said.

Chris Pimental who was working in a Dollar General nearby said he saw the illegal seller.

“She came in the store started walking up and down the aisles asking people to make offers on the puppies it was crazy,” Pimental told NBC New York.

Body cam captured the moment a witness panicking asks the officers for help.

“We cut the bag open and that’s when five puppies flooded out well 4 because one was completely at the bottom unconscious…opened up its eyes and came back to life,” Officer Austin Glickman, another one of the officers who helped the puppies, said.

Police on the scene immediately gave all the puppies water and love.

Now the puppies are being treated at the Manhattan ASPCA where they are being evaluated, while cops from the 101st Precinct are keeping in touch — in hopes of adopting them.

Officers immediately took the puppies and arrested the woman, who was identified as 44-year-old Shirley Medina.

Medina was subsequently charged with torture injury to an animal, neglect of impound animals, and criminal possession of a weapon since she allegedly had brass knuckles.

Attorney information for Medina was not immediately known.

In a statement following the ordeal, the ASPCA said in part: “Thanks to the actions of the New York City Police Department, these puppies were quickly transported to the ASPCA, where veterinary experts are conducting forensic exams and providing them with much-needed care.”

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A 25-year-old man has been arrested in connection with the violent child sexual attack that has terrorized a Queens community for days and shocked New Yorkers throughout the city, police said Tuesday.

The man, identified by police as Christian Inga, was taken into custody at 108th and Waldron Street, less than three miles from the popular Kissena Park where officials allege he ambushed two 13-year-olds in a field after school Thursday, forced them into the woods at knifepoint and tied them up before sexually assaulting the girl.

Two senior police officials say he is an Ecuadorian national who arrived in New York City in 2021 after crossing the border in Eagle Pass, Texas. People living with him at a rooming house recognized him from the NYPD wanted posters.

Jeffrey Flores told NBC New York he recognized Inga after police released a sketch and video of him on a bike. Flores decided to take some friends to wait at a bodega on 108th and Waldon streets the suspect frequents for cigarettes and drinks. Another man said they waited for Inga for hours.

He eventually showed up in the middle of the night.

“I told everybody yo this the rapist. I punched him. I kicked him. I ain’t gonna lie,” said Flores.

They started attacking him, sources said, and called 911 to say, “Come get him.”

“He started yelling ‘help, help’ in Spanish. I was like ‘Yeah that’s what the little girl was saying,'” said Flores. “He really try to run, run, run for his life but he couldn’t.”

Flores says he put Inga in a headlock and tied his legs together with a belt. He said the man didn’t deny the sexual assault allegations, a statement corroborated by a bodega worker in the store at the time.

“Yeah he admitted to it. He said, ‘Alright, alright, fine, fine. Just leave me alone, don’t hit me, don’t hit me,'” Flores told News 4.

At one point, Flores says the man tried to hide underneath a car — until officers arrived and took him into custody.

“We don’t have confirmation of that,” said NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny. “We are hearing that possibly they may have used a belt to try to hold his feet together to keep him from running away.”

Kenny also said Inga waived his Miranda rights and “indicated he had a drug problem.” He also said he found the knife used in the alleged attack, and “that this was the first time he’s ever done anything like this.”

Hailed a neighborhood hero, Flores says he felt the need to apprehend Inga because he has two sisters and a baby girl on the way.

“Feels good, I did something good for New York City. That’s one less guy off the streets,” said Flores. “We was lucky enough to see him, that’s crazy. It’s not everyday you just catch a rapist.”

Inga, a father of two, is being charged with rape, robbery, sexual assault, kidnapping, endangering child welfare and other counts.

Multiple high-level NYPD officials had pleaded with the public Friday for help identifying the tattooed stranger they say forced the schoolmates into the woods. They had offered a $10,000 reward for information leading to an arrest.

Police thanked the community for helping identify the suspect.

“This is exactly what we mean when talk about public safety is a shared responsibility,” said NYPD Commissioner Edward Cabán. “The past few days proved to the world again that the people in this city can come together and get the job done like no one else.”

According to investigators, the boy and girl were on a field in Kissena Park around 3 p.m., just after school let out for the day, when a curly-haired man with braces walked up and demanded they follow him into the woods. When they refused, police say he pulled out a “large machete-style knife” and forced them into an isolated area, where he bound each of their wrists with a shoelace. Then he sexually assaulted the 13-year-old girl.

The kids told cops the man warned them to stay where they were for 20 minutes. He then ran off with their phones. Once time was up, they returned to school and told administrators what happened. They called 911 immediately.

Cabán also said the victims gave “crucial” information that was needed to make the arrest.

The children were taken to a hospital in stable condition.

A shoelace, possibly the one used to tie the children’s wrists, was recovered at the scene.

Police said Inga had no prior arrests in New York City but did have one arrest in Texas.

New York City is not exactly known for having ludicrously capacious living situations (at least for most people), but Queens appears to take it to another level. The borough has the smallest new apartments on average among each of the five boroughs, and the third-smallest in the country overall, according to a report from the real estate site RentCafe.

So just how small are the Queens apartments? At 692 square feet on average, new apartments there are slightly smaller than the ones found in Brooklyn, which on average measure out to 712 square feet.

Both boroughs have seen the size of the average new apartment there shrink over the past 10 years, according to RentCafe. Queens’ apartments have lost 32 square feet on average, a decline of 4.4% in the past decade. In Brooklyn, the shrink is a bit smaller: About 21 square feet smaller, a loss of about 2.9% of space.

Among major U.S. cities, only Seattle and Portland average smaller apartment sizes. The average new apartment in Seattle is 661 square feet, while Portland’s is 685 square feet.

Not far behind Queens and Brooklyn is Manhattan, where the average new apartment is 737 square feet — which is actually an increase of 2.2% from a decade ago, adding 16 square feet, RentCafe found. Manhattan had the sixth-smallest new apartment size, behind Detroit.

Two cities in New Jersey also made the list: With new apartments averaging 788 square feet, Jersey City was ranked 15th on the list, while Newark was 20th. The Garden State’s largest city actually saw the average new apartment size increase pretty dramatically since 2014, adding 113 square feet, up more than 16%.

Looking for a bit more room? Head to Gainesville, Florida, where the average new apartment there is just under 1,200 square feet, according to RentCafe. It was one of five Florida cities to make the list with the largest new apartments.

Multiple high-level NYPD officials pleaded with the public Friday for help identifying the tattooed stranger they say forced two 13-year-old schoolmates into some park woods at knifepoint, tied them up and sexually assaulted the girl.

They’ve also posted flyers asking for help — and added a $10,000 reward for information leading to an arrest.

According to investigators, the boy and girl were on a field in Flushing’s Kissena Park around 3 p.m., just after school let out for the day, when a curly-haired man with braces walked up and demanded they follow him into the woods. When they refused, police say he pulled out a “large machete-style knife” and forced them into an isolated area, where he bound each of their wrists with a shoelace. Then he sexually assaulted the 13-year-old girl.

The kids told cops the man warned them to stay where they were for 20 minutes. He then ran off with their phones. Once time was up, they returned to school and told administrators what happened. They called 911 immediately.

“As a father, a member of this department for many years, this is a parents’ nightmare — and all the communities should be very upset about this and willing to come out and help the police department as we try to resolve this issue,” NYPD Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey said. “We will spare no expense. We will use every investigative resource. And I again implore the community to help us bring closure to this case for these young children and this family.”

The children were taken to a hospital in stable condition.

Detectives say they don’t yet have footage of their suspect and are conducting a video canvas of the area in hopes of capturing his image. He is described as being about 5 feet 5 inches tall and in his 20s with a heavy accent. He wore braces on his teeth and he had a tattoo of a boar or a bull with red eyes on his chest, according to police. He was last seen wearing a black T-shirt, black sweatpants and red sneakers, and was carrying a green backpack.

They did recover a shoelace at the scene and are processing that to determine whether it was the one used to tie up the children. A water bottle the attacker left behind is also behind processed. Crime scene detectives are still searching the area, NYPD officials said Friday afternoon, and the department is working with the Queens district attorney’s office on search warrants. They say they’re looking at all registered sex offenders known to live in the area.

One NYPD official called the suspect an “animal” — and again urged the public for help getting him off the street.

Anyone with information on the attack is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS.

A stranger violently attacked two 13-year-olds in a Queens park in the middle of the afternoon a day ago, flashing a knife and forcing them both into the woods, where he sexually assaulted the girl, authorities say.

According to police, the 13-year-old girl and a 13-year-old boy were in Kissena Park near Colden Street and Kalmia Avenue around 3:30 p.m. Thursday, not long after school let out, when a man walked up to them.

He showed a knife and motioned them both into the woods, then took their cellphones. He ran off after the sex attack on the girl, police say.

The victims were taken to a hospital in stable condition.

Detectives don’t currently have any footage of their suspect and are conducting a video canvas of the area in hopes of capturing his image. He is described as being about 5 feet 5 inches tall and in his 20s with curly hair. He appeared to have dental braces on his teeth and had a tattoo of a boar or a bull with red eyes on his chest, according to police.

Anyone with information on the attack is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey announced the opening of a free drop-off, pickup and waiting lot at the AirTrain JFK station at Lefferts Boulevard to help passengers avoid anticipated heavy traffic congestion this summer.

The new lot will allow passengers to easily hop onto the AirTrain with frequent service for an easy, eight-minute ride to the terminals at no cost, saving them time and anxiety from potential construction-related congestion.

This year’s summer travel season is forecast to hit a record for JFK with an estimated 18.2 million passengers traveling through the airport – 700,000 more than last year.

“Building a new JFK Airport with world-class terminals and a new and more efficient roadway network will cause some temporary inconveniences and heightened traffic for passengers this busy summer travel season,” said Port Authority Chairman Kevin O’Toole. “While we will continue to do all we can to minimize the potential for airport traffic in the short term, we can assure you that in the end, a new JFK Airport will rise as one of the world’s great global gateways that will make today’s inconveniences seem like a distant memory.”

Now open: A free drop-off, pickup, and waiting lot at @JFKairport’s Lefferts Blvd AirTrain JFK station.

The lot, which will help passengers avoid heavy summer congestion at JFK, offers an easy, free, eight-minute AirTrain ride to the terminals. Details ➡️ https://t.co/41kfBAYjeD pic.twitter.com/07ob3IplLT

— Port Authority of NY & NJ (@PANYNJ) June 11, 2024

Port Authority May 21

Brace for JFK Airport traffic nightmare as $19B construction plans begin: What to know

MTA Oct 4, 2023

AirTrain JFK to accept MTA's OMNY contactless payment starting next week

news Sep 1, 2023

These are the most and least expensive U.S. airports to fly out of—JFK, LAX didn't make either list

Where is the free lot and what does it include?

The new lot includes hundreds of designated spaces within Long Term Parking Lot 9, next to AirTrain JFK’s Lefferts Blvd station. Drivers can wait for passengers and drop off or pick up passengers at no cost.

The AirTrain connection to terminals via the Lefferts Blvd station is also free of charge. The lot is easily accessible to local highways, and abundant new signage directs drivers to the new facility.

“You gonna learn today” was one of the written messages found during the traffic stop, sources told NBC New York. NYPD officials would not confirm the details of any written messages citing an ongoing investigation.

The man was driving a Ford Explorer with obscured windows and a blacked-out license plate around 1:30 a.m. at 86th and Ditmars in East Elmhurst on Wednesday morning, police said. Officers patrolling in the area pulled the man over because of the unclear license plate and that’s when they discovered the items in his car, according to the NYPD.

During a news conference Wednesday afternoon, police officials said the suspect had on him:

• A .9-mm Glock handgun
• 9 loaded magazines
• Heavy body armor
• NYPD uniform items
• Stun gun
• Weighted whip
• Handcuffs
• 2 axes
• NYC Transit vest

According to a photo released by police, the suspect also had a mask made popular by the movie “V for Vendetta” in his possession. Police said the loaded firearm was found underneath the driver’s seat, and the knife was found on the driver. A further search of the vehicle uncovered three additional knives, two axes, two daggers, a ballistic vest and eight loaded magazines.

The NYPD has the lead on the investigation at this time but the NY Joint Terrorism Task Force and other law enforcement agencies have been notified given some of the other statements law enforcement found and other evidence gathered.

Investigators were looking into whether the individual, identified by police as 27-year-old Judd Sanson, has a history of emotional issues or may have been trying to self-radicalize in the name of terrorism.

The investigation is still in its early stages, as investigators work to see if there is any clarity as to why the suspect had the weapons. The suspect was being held at a police precinct in Elmhurst.

He is expected to be charged with criminal possession of a weapon (loaded firearm), criminal possession of a weapon, unlawful possession of ammo feed device, and obscured license plate, according to an NYPD spokesperson.

It’s too early to know the man’s motive and if there was any terrorist-related intent, according to NYPD Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey.

An Alabama man, who used to live in Queens, was charged for leaving the scene of a deadly hit-and-run that killed a 79-year-old woman in 2021, the local district attorney said.

Edward Garzón, 43, was arraigned Thursday on the charge of leaving the scene of a fatal collision near the Shops at Atlas Park in Glendale. If convicted, Garzón faces up to seven years in prison. He is scheduled to return to court on July 22.

The charges stem for an alleged series of events that took place Dec. 13, 2021. On that day, att around 4:50 p.m., Garzón was driving a black 2015 Mercedes Benz S550 headed eastbound on Cooper Avenue between 82nd and 83rd streets when Helena Conti of Queens was walking across the street.

Allegedly, Garzón hit Conti and left the scene. Conti was taken to a hospital where she died of severe head trauma suffered during the impact, the charges said.

Investigators allegedly found the Mercedes at a local auto body shop after an insurance claim for the damage was filed.

Subsequently, the investigators obtained DNA samples that matched Conti from the car’s windshield and headlights, among other areas on the car.

“I created a Vehicular Homicide Unit and assembled experts to make sure that every family gets closure,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said of the unit which not only examines current unsolved cases but older ones as well. “Working with our partners at the NYPD, we reviewed unsolved cases and today we’re announcing that a defendant will be held accountable for the death of a woman who was hit and left to die on a Queens street in December 2021.”

Attorney information for Garzón was not immediately known.

The district attorney in Queens announced this week that Waheed Foster, who is homeless, pleaded guilty for the September 2022 attack at the Howard Beach/JFK Airport subway station.

“The brutality and random nature of this attack is unconscionable,” DA Melinda Katz said in a statement. “After building such a strong case against this defendant, we are looking to provide a measure of closure for the survivor, who suffered such serious injuries.”

Foster, 44, faces up to 22 years in prison, followed by five years of post-release supervision. Reached by phone, Foster’s attorney did not have a comment.

According to the charges, Foster allegedly followed a 33-year-old woman as she got off the train at the station while she was on her way to work at around 5:30 a.m. Sept. 20, 2022.

As she went up the stairs, Foster came up from behind and struck her in the head with a hard object.

Video surveillance shows the woman run through the station, and Foster chasing and catching up to her before throwing her on the ground. Foster allegedly punched her in the face and stomped on her head repeatedly.

A Good Samaritan is also seen on video intervening and chasing Foster away.

According to the district attorney, the woman was taken to a local hospital where she went underwent emergency eye surgery — eventually losing sight in her right eye.

Bernardo Castro Mata, who is from Venezuela, was shot in the ankle when police returned fire. He was arraigned in the hospital Wednesday; it wasn’t clear if he entered a plea. Law enforcement sources say Castro Mata arrived in the U.S. in 2023 and had been staying at the shelter on Ditmars Boulevard.

The officers he is accused of shooting — one in the bulletproof vest, one in the leg — were treated and released from a hospital. The two were investigating a robbery pattern involving mopeds and scooters in which Castro Mata was suspected when they spotted a man on a moped going the wrong way in East Elmhurst around 1:30 a.m. Monday.

The man, later identified as Castro Mata, got off the moped and took off on foot. The two 26-year-old NYPD officers gave chase — and allege Castro Mata fired at them during the pursuit. A firearm was recovered at the scene.

“According to the criminal complaint, this defendant fired his gun point-blank into the chest of a New York City police officer, and just seconds later shot another officer in the leg,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said in a statement Wednesday. “NYPD officers put their lives at risk every day to protect New Yorkers and keep our communities safe. Amongst other charges, including criminal possession of the weapon and assault, we are charging the defendant with the attempted murder of both police officers.”

Castro Mata was remanded after his hearing Wednesday. He faces up to 40 years to life in prison for each attempted murder of a police officer count if convicted. He is being represented by a public defender.

Investigators said the 19-year-old has no prior arrests in New York City but is a suspect in two violent robberies in Queens on May 21. In both cases, suspects on mopeds used force to rob victims of various items, including purses, phones and debit cards, according to three senior law enforcement officials.

“The patterns that we’re looking at currently in Queens that he’s involved with — phone snatching, in one case a woman attacked [and] her debit card stolen, and eventually it was used at a smoke shop,” NYPD Chief Joseph Kenny said.

Police say they’re investigating more than 80 robbery patterns involving scooters and mopeds citywide — four times the number of similar cases they had in the same time frame last year. In 2022, there were no such crime patterns.

While overall crime is down, robberies are on the rise, with moped robberies being a significant factor. A police official said the department has seized more than 13,000 mopeds thus far in 2024, and nearly 55,000 dating back to 2022.

Mayor Eric Adams visited the officers in the hospital Monday and later decried the shooting as “senseless.”

New York City is looking to expand access to public restrooms citywide over the next five years.

Mayor Eric Adams announced on Monday the launch of the “Ur In Luck” initiative which will build 46 new restrooms and renovate 36 existing ones. Once this plan is completed, 10 additional restrooms are slated for the Bronx, 23 for Brooklyn, 28 in Manhattan, 14 in Queens and seven on Staten Island — an addition to the nearly 1,000 public restrooms already in existence across the five boroughs, the city said.

Additionally, the city said, the 36 existing restrooms that will undergo renovations ranging from additional stalls to accessibility upgrades to energy efficient features.

Part of the “Ur In Luck” initiative is a new Google Maps layer that New Yorkers can activate on their phones to easily find the locations of every public restroom citywide.

The Google Maps layer — which will be updated biannually— will include restrooms operated by NYC Parks, DOT, the Metropolitan Transit Authority, the city’s ‘privately-owned public spaces,’ and all three of the city’s library systems — the New York Public Library, the Brooklyn Public Library, and the Queens Public Library.

“Part of making New York City a more livable city is tackling the little things — the things we don’t think about until we need them,” Adams said. “Access to public restrooms is high on that list, maybe even number one or two. We’ve already added changing tables to all NYC Parks public restrooms where it’s feasible — three years ahead of schedule. The new and renovated bathrooms we’ll deliver over the next five years will make it easier for New Yorkers to embrace the best parts of this city: our shared outdoors spaces. And our new Google Maps layer will make it easier to find relief when you’ve got to go. ‘Ur in’ luck, New York.”

Finally, the city is establishing a joint taskforce to assist in siting and fast-tracking approvals for 14 new high-tech, self-cleaning automatic public toilets on city sidewalks and plazas.

“New Yorkers deserve accessible, well-maintained public restrooms — and we’re delivering. NYC Parks is leading the way with innovative initiatives and partnerships to build these vital public resources more quickly and efficiently,” NYC Parks Commissioner Sue Donoghue said.

“Everyone — seniors, parents with kids, anyone enjoying the day outdoors, needs access to a public bathroom without having to buy anything or beg for a code,” Deputy Mayor for Operations Meera Joshi. “Public bathrooms are critical infrastructure for New York City, where people are always out and about. We’re making New York City a little easier and more livable, one public restroom at a time.”  

Officers investigating a robbery pattern involving mopeds and scooters in East Elmhurst tried to pull over a person going the wrong way on a moped near 23rd Avenue and 82nd Street just after 1:30 a.m., police said, but the man jumped off and ran away.

The two 26-year-old officers chased him several blocks, and NYPD officials say he fired at them multiple times during the pursuit. One officer, Richard Yarusso, was hit in his bulletproof vest, which stopped the bullet; the other, Christopher Abreu, took a bullet to the leg.

They were both taken to Elmhurst Hospital and were later released to applause from other law enforcement members.

The suspect, identified as 19-year-old Bernardo Raul Castro Mata, was shot once in the right ankle. He was taken into custody and transported to a hospital for treatment, where he was expected to recover after surgery. The teen had been staying at a migrant shelter on Ditmars Boulevard, steps from the crime scene, after arriving in the U.S. in 2023, law enforcement sources said.

It was not immediately clear what charges Castro Mata would face, or if he had an attorney.

A firearm was recovered at the scene.

Investigators said the 19-year-old from Venezuela has no prior arrests in New York City but is a suspect in two violent robberies in Queens on May 21. In both cases, suspects on mopeds used force to rob victims of various items, including purses, phones and debit cards, according to three senior law enforcement officials.

“The patterns that we’re looking at currently in Queens that he’s involved with — phone snatching, in one case a woman attacked [and] her debit card stolen, and eventually it was used at a smoke shop,” said NYPD Chief Joseph Kenny.

Police say they’re currently investigating more than 80 robbery patterns involving scooters and mopeds citywide — four times the number of similar cases they had in the same time frame last year. In 2022, there were no such crime patterns.

While overall crime is down, robberies are on the rise, with moped robberies being a significant factor. A police official said the department has seized more than 13,000 mopeds thus far in 2024, and nearly 55,000 dating back to 2022.

Mayor Eric Adams visited the officers in the hospital Monday and later decried the shooting as “senseless.”

“This is a bullet hole,” Adams said, holding up the torn vest at a press conference. “Because of this vest, a young police officer is going home. The senseless act of violence, a total disregard for life, our officers responded with a level of discipline a level of focus and a level of professionalism.”

NYPD Commissioner Edward Caban said the officers were in good spirits, and the department stood ready to assist.

The investigation is ongoing.

A weekend-long closure of part of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway wrapped almost 24 hours earlier than expected.

The Queens-bound BQE was fully closed from Atlantic Avenue to Sands Street starting at 2 a.m. Saturday, and it was scheduled to remain closed until 4 a.m. Monday. The Department of Transportation delivered a huge bit of good news on Sunday morning, announcing that the repairs were done and the BQE fully reopened by 6 a.m.

The Queens-bound BQE will be fully closed from Atlantic Avenue to Sands Street starting at 2 a.m. Saturday, and it will remain closed until 4 a.m. Monday, the DOT said. That includes a full closure between the Atlantic Avenue entrance ramp and the Manhattan Bridge exit ramp in the direction of Queens.

The repairs, which build on repair work conducted in October 2023 and April 2024, focus on new concrete and reinforcing steel bars being added at spans on the BQE near Clark Street and Grace Court as part of near-term work critical to extending the structure’s lifespan. This weekend’s round of repairs is expected to be the final one.

“We are approaching the third and final phase of our interim repair work for 2024 on the BQE to preserve its lifespan and keep it in a state of good repair,” said NYC DOT Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez. “As we did in October and April we will keep the public closely updated on our progress as we plan ahead for this work.”

Here are the Queens-bound ramps that were impacted by the closures:

• 3^rd Ave entrance Ramp
• 6^th Ave entrance ramp
• Prospect Expressway Entrance Ramp
• Hamilton Avenue Entrance Ramp
• Atlantic Avenue Entrance Ramp

See detour maps and get more information here.

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Part of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway will be closed for repairs for the entire weekend, according to the city’s Department of Transportation, and it could lead to a traffic nightmare in downtown Brooklyn.

The Queens-bound BQE will be fully closed from Atlantic Avenue to Sands Street starting at 2 a.m. Saturday, and it will remain closed until 4 a.m. Monday, the DOT said. That includes a full closure between the Atlantic Avenue entrance ramp and the Manhattan Bridge exit ramp in the direction of Queens.

The repairs, which build on repair work conducted in October 2023 and April 2024, focus on new concrete and reinforcing steel bars being added at spans on the BQE near Clark Street and Grace Court as part of near-term work critical to extending the structure’s lifespan. This weekend’s round of repairs is expected to be the final one.

Here are the Queens-bound ramps that will be impacted by the closures:

“We are approaching the third and final phase of our interim repair work for 2024 on the BQE to preserve its lifespan and keep it in a state of good repair,” said NYC DOT Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez. “As we did in October and April we will keep the public closely updated on our progress as we plan ahead for this work.”

• 3^rd Ave entrance Ramp
• 6^th Ave entrance ramp
• Prospect Expressway Entrance Ramp
• Hamilton Avenue Entrance Ramp
• Atlantic Avenue Entrance Ramp

See detour maps and get more information here.

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Anthony Scalici was indicted by a grand jury in the death of his 64-year-old uncle, Rosario Prestigiacomo, who was discovered face down in a pool of blood in his own hallway on Feb. 10, 2009. Scalici, 41, of Boynton Beach, is accused of second-degree murder in the case. It wasn’t immediately clear if he entered a plea at his arraignment Thursday.

It marks the first time a New York City homicide suspect was identified and arrested using public genealogy databases, officials say.

According to the investigation, cops were called to Prestigiacomo’s Ridgewood home on Greene Avenue around 2:15 p.m. that February day and encountered a bloodbath on the walls and floor. Prestigiacomo had been stabbed 16 times in the face, neck, torso and extremities — and suffered puncture wounds to his lung, esophagus, chest and abdomen.

He also endured blunt force injuries to his head, torso and extremities, according to investigators’ report.

Crime scene detectives collected several blood swabs from the location at the time. The medical examiner’s office was able to match a DNA profile to the victim as well as identify the DNA profile of a second, unknown man, which suggested the attacker had been hurt or bleeding.

Investigators ran the unidentified DNA through local, state and national systems with no results at the time.

In March 2022, the Queens district attorney’s office and the NYPD’s cold case unit sought help from a private lab and the Department of Homeland Security to try to generate leads using forensic genetic genealogy. A few months later, the lab was able to create an advanced genealogical profile from the suspect’s blood left at the scene.

That profile was then uploaded to public databases, information from which was also used to create a family tree to identify possible suspects or suspects’ relatives. Late in 2023, they got a potential lead and turned it over.

Ultimately, that led to the identification of Scalici. Earlier this year, detectives from the NYPD Cold Case Squad and Boynton Beach Police Department surveilled Scalici in an effort to get a discarded DNA sample — like from something he tossed in the trash. On Feb. 17, 2024, detectives were able to retrieve a fork he had thrown away.

The fork produced a DNA profile that matched the unknown DNA profile recovered from under one of the victim’s fingernails. It also matched the unknown male DNA profile developed from the blood evidence left at the scene.

Scalici was apprehended in Boynton Beach earlier this month and extradited to New York on Wednesday to face charges. Authorities didn’t immediately speculate on a possible motive. It wasn’t clear if Scalici had an attorney.

Authorities responded to PS 219, a middle school on Gravett Road in Kew Gardens Hills, after getting a call about a possible incident in the cafeteria shortly before 11 a.m.

A total of 43 people with minor injuries, 31 of them students, were evaluated at the scene. Eight students and two adults were taken to a hospital with problems consistent with injury from a chemical irritant. All were expected to recover.

A teenager was taken into custody at the school, police said. Law enforcement sources say the student they have in custody told police he accidentally sat on the pepper spray can. But other students told police he was spraying it intentionally in the cafeteria, the sources said.

Students also told NBC New York that the teen had purchased the pepper spray on TikTok Shop.

No other details were immediately available.

In a subsequent statement following the incident, NYC Schools Deputy Press Secretary David Clarke said: “The safety of everyone in our school buildings is our absolute top priority. A pepper spray device was discharged in a school cafeteria, and all impacted students and staff were immediately evaluated by EMS. We are offering additional security and supports to the school community today and in the coming days and are working closely with the NYPD regarding follow-up actions. A reminder for parents, pepper spray and other ‘personal safety devices’ are not allowed in schools.”

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The memorial will honor 99 New York service members killed in action overseas. The monument is expected to be built in Whitestone, Queens, along the waterfront near the Utopia Parkway Seawall.

The fallen service members deserve to be “memorialized now and forever,” Mayor Eric Adams said Thursday.

“With this new memorial, we will honor a new generation of souls who gave their lives far too early in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan while simultaneously paying tribute to the hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers who have served our country in these wars,” Adams said. “God bless their memories.”

Queens was selected as the location for the memorial because it is home to the largest number of servicemembers killed in the post-9/11 era. The borough is also home to the largest number of military veterans, according to the mayor’s office.

The memorial is expected to be part of a refurbished walkway and bike path along the waterfront near the Whitestone Bridge.

More than 7,000 U.S. troops died in fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq, the longest military conflicts in the nation’s history. Nearly 2977 people were killed in the 9-11 attacks along with the 19 hijackers. It is believed more than 3,000 more people have died of 9/11 related illnesses, many of them first responders who were in lower Manhattan when the towers fell.

The memorial for the fallen will be paid for with privately raised funds as well as public capital project dollars.  An artist selection process will be put in place starting June 3 “…to ensure the memorial appropriately reflects the bravery and sacrifice of the fallen service members from this generation.”

New York City Department of Veteran’s Services Commissioner James Hendon said the memorial will be “set along the peaceful waterside” to provide “a place of serene reflection.”

Now, those who live in the neighborhood and a bodega association are offering their support for the store owner behind bars for allegedly shooting the suspect.

Francisco Valerio, the owner of Franja Wines & Liquors on Wyckoff Avenue in Ridgewood, was in custody on Tuesday after the NYPD said he accidentally shot a shoplifter during a scuffle the night before.

Queens May 11

Parents of son stabbed ‘over one beer' call for restorative justice in NYC bodega killing

As seen on May 8

Rego Park bodega worker involved in deadly stabbing won't face charges, union says

As seen on May 7

Man stabbed to death at Rego Park bodega

Two 20-year-old men, identified as Edwin Poaquiza and Kevin Pullutasi, tried to steal bottles of alcohol from the liquor store and were escorted out, according to police. But they later returned to the shop, things quickly turned violent.

“The video tape shows everything. It shows when they came back. It shows when they tried to kick the door down. Valerio opened the door and he was assaulted. He was punched in the face,” said Fernando Mateo, of the United Bodegas of America. “And guess what, he could’ve lost his life.”

The United Bodegas of America plans to release surveillance video later in the week.

According to police, Valerio — a licensed gun owner — pistol-whipped one of the suspects. As he did so, the gun went off.

The man who was shot in the stomach was expected to survive. The two suspected shoplifter face multiple charges including robbery, assault and menacing.

The 53-year-old was charged with reckless endangerment.

“Francisco Valerio is a hard working, decent man, no criminal record,” said Mateo. “We cannot prosecute this man.”

Just two weeks ago, a similar alteration unfolded at a Rego Park bodega. Police said Netesh Netesh, a worker at the store, stabbed 21-year old Dylan Marino to death in a confrontation over a stolen beer.

Netesh was taken into custody and later released.

The head of the bodega workers emphasized self-defense is a must for those working in stores.

“People need to be able to defend and protect their own lives,” Mateo said.

An investigation is ongoing.

Shamel Capers spent eight years in prison after he was found guilty in the killing of D’Aja Robinson in 2013. The 14-year-old girl was struck by a stray bullet while riding an MTA bus home in Jamaica from a birthday party.

Capers, just 16 years old at the time, was sentenced in 2014 to 15 years to life in prison for Robinson’s killing. But Capers was later set free in 2022, after the main witness in the case, a jailed gang member, was recorded lying about Capers’ involvement in exchange for a lighter sentence in his own separate case.

Robinson’s family was not fully convinced Capers was innocent. Now another family is seeking justice for a relative of their own, after 19-year-old Joshua Taylor was caught in the middle of a shootout in July 2023 that claimed his life. He was shot in the chest and later died at the hospital.

“Bullets started flying and he ended up dying,” said Ronald Abrams, Taylor’s grandfather. “Justice should be done.”

A Queens grand jury indicted Capers on attempted murder in Taylor’s shooting death, District Attorney Melinda Katz said. He also faces gun possession and reckless endangerment charges.

Katz said in a statement that it is important to distinguish the difference between the two cases Capers has been connected to.

“In the case of D’aja Robinson’s murder, an exhaustive investigation and newly discovered evidence led us to conclude that Shamel Capers had been wrongfully convicted. The court agreed and the conviction was vacated. The defendant responsible for Robinson’s murder is in prison serving a sentence of 25 years to life,” Katz said. “In this incident, Capers is charged with attempted murder … We are duty bound to follow the facts in every case wherever they may lead us.”

Two other men were also charged, including Dante Hunter, who prosecutors said fired the round that struck Taylor. Hunter, 25, was charged with murder, attempted murder, weapon possession and reckless endangerment. Damone Miller, a 21-year-old from Brooklyn, faces the same charges as Capers.

Capers’ attorney’s released a statement Tuesday night, promising a vigorous defense and saying in part “His own tragic past should strongly caution against any rush to judgment or reporting of false information in this case.”

Capers, now 26, pleaded not guilty to all charges. He faces up to 25 years in prison if convicted. His next court appearance is scheduled for June 18.

The 23-year-old man was hit around 4:30 a.m. Sunday on the southbound side of the expressway at Liberty Avenue in South Richmond Hill, police said. The NYPD highway unit vehicle was on its way to another incident when it struck the man trying to make his way across lanes.

He was rushed to nearby Jamaica Hospital, but was pronounced dead there a short time later. The man’s name has not yet been released.

The officer who was behind the wheel of the department vehicle at the time remained at the scene, but was later taken to the hospital with minor injuries.

An investigation is ongoing. Investigators are looking for video to help learn what led to the deadly collision.

The disturbing discovery was made at the World’s Fair Marina just before 2 p.m. after the body washed up along the shore of Flushing Bay, not far from Citi Field. The NYPD, parks enforcement officers, and personnel from the city medical examiner’s office were at the scene shortly after.

The cause of death remains a mystery, as does the man’s identity. Police were tracking down the man’s family to notify them of his passing before they release his name to the public.

The medical examiner’s officer will determine a cause of death. An investigation is ongoing.

The driver was heading south on 124th Street near 20th Avenue in College Point just after 6 p.m. Saturday, police said. The child, a 5-year-old boy, ran into the street and was hit, according to officials.

It was not immediately clear why the boy ran into the street. The crash scene sits right next to a playground.

He was taken to Jacobi Hospital, where he died. The child’s identity was not released.

The driver stayed at the scene, and authorities have not said if they believe she was speeding at the time. An investigation is ongoing.

Police said one of the men cut a pocket on the sleeping man’s pants and stole his phone, wallet and vape. It happened on May 7 around 3:30 a.m. on F train near the Union Turnpike-Kew Gardens subway station.

The 52-year-old victim was not injured in the robbery, according to police, who are now searching for the two suspects. The suspects are wanted in connection with grand larceny, police said.

Police are asking anyone with information on the case to call Crime Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782).

Police say Michael Budhu, an assistant Social Studies principal at John Adams High School in Ozone Park, was taken into custody Wednesday at work. He told detectives that the student had visited his office on Monday and Tuesday of the week in the early afternoon hours. He claimed he could not recall if they were alone and denied touching her or showing her sexual images on his phone, prosecutors say.

Prosecutors said they were alone in his office on Monday, when Budhu allegedly disclosed personal marital problems and rubbed the student’s inner thigh without her consent.

The next day, he allegedly showed her explicit photos and videos of himself performing sexual acts, grabbed her arm, and instructed her to get on the table. The student left after another student knocked on the door, but not before Budhu allegedly threatened her with academic failure if she did not return the following day.

The principal allegedly told the child, “If you want to pass my class, this will have to happen.”

The student reported the incidents to a teacher, who informed another assistant principal, who called the police.

Asked outside court Thursday if the allegations against him were true, Budhu said, “No.”

Attorney information for him wasn’t immediately available.

The city’s Department of Education said in a statement that Budhu had been reassigned pending an investigation.

“This alleged behavior is reprehensible, and nothing is more important than the safety and well-being of our students,” a spokesperson said.

Officers were called to the scene in Jamaica just before 8 p.m. after a group of about 10 kids got involved in some kind of brawl on 160th Street near Tuskegee Airmen Way. As that was going on, two males walked up to the group and shot at them, police said.

The 12-year-old girl was shot in the left arm and was taken to the hospital, where she was recovering. Two other women were hurt as well, but it wasn’t clear how they suffered their injuries.

An 18-year-old was taken to the hospital with cuts to the head, but police said she was not believed to have been slashed or cut with a weapon. A 26-year-old walked to Jamaica Hospital after getting stabbed in the chest, according to police, but she is also expected to survive.

The two suspects wearing masks got away in a car, police said. It was not immediately clear if one or both of them opened fire, and their relationship with the group wasn’t known.

Police couldn’t say if the group of kids fighting was made up of all girls or if it was mixed with boys as well.

Surveillance video shows one man using a knee scooter — which can help people with lower body injuries get around — making his way down Broadway in Woodside before 3 p.m., as a woman with a Husky puppy walks beside him. Immediately behind them was a man in a grey hooded sweatshirt who caught up with the and launched his attack, the video showed.

The man in the hoodie could be seen pummeling the other man at first, but another surveillance camera from a different angle showed that the man on the scooter quickly turned the table on his attacker. The man and woman fought back, and police said it was the man using the scooter who stabbed the attacker repeatedly.

It was not clear if the man on the scooter had a knife. A closer look at the video showed him holding an object of some sort between his fingers, and the man he allegedly stabbed was also seen bleeding, though he was also able to walk around afterward.

The man and woman walked away from the scene. The 37-year-old man, according to police, who launched the attack and was allegedly stabbed was taken to the hospital. His condition was not immediately clear but he is recovering.

The motive behind the attack is also unclear.

Police were still looking for the man and woman seen in the video. There was no word on whether any charges were expected. An investigation is ongoing.

A squatter who used phoney phony utility bills and a forged lease to live in a Queens house — and even filed a lawsuit against the rightful property owner — is now facing a litany charges that could send him to prison for more than a decade, the local district attorney said.

Lance White-Hunt, 24 and of Brooklyn, was arraigned earlier this week on an 18-count indictment charging him with burglary in the second degree; two counts of criminal possession of a forged instrument in the second degree; five counts of identity theft in the first degree; attempted grand larceny in the third degree; attempted criminal possession of stolen property in the third degree; offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree; tampering with physical evidence; three counts of criminal mischief in the fourth degree; petit larceny; and two counts of criminal possession of a forged instrument in the third degree.

If convicted, White-Hunt faces up to 15 years in prison. He is set to return to court on June 11. Attorney information was not immediately known.

According to the charges, around Feb. 23, the owner of a Jamaica, Queens home since 2020 on Lakewood Avenue listed it for rent through a broker. Allegedly, for several weeks, the broker visited the location various times weekly and saw that the house was vacant, the windows closed and not damaged and the doors locked.

However, days later, on March 1, the same broker who made regular stops at the property saw that the locks were changed on the front door and that her key no longer worked, according to the charges. It was then, on March 4, that the broker allegedly saw White-Hunt inside the residence and police were called. Allegedly, White-Hunt had been staying at the location since January and provided a supposed lease with the broker with the same real estate agency that the broker worked for listed as the landlords.

The broker then reviewed the lease, which she had never seen before and found her forged signature, according to the charges. Subsequently, on March 5, the police arrived at the location again and White-Hunt provided a supposed bill from National Grid and AT&T as proof of residence. However, both companies later confirmed that the account numbers did not exist in their official records.

Then, on March 14, White-Hunt proceeded to file a lawsuit against the homeowner’s LLC, the broker, and real estate agency for being illegal lockout. As part of the civil suit, White-Hunt filed a residential lease that was determined to have been forged and was a different lease than that provided by White-Hunt to officers on scene on March 4. The civil lawsuit was later discontinued with prejudice.

Following an investigation, White-Hunt was arrested on May 13.

“You cannot claim rights to a home that you have entered illegally,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said. “My office will not allow individuals to capitalize on the confusion surrounding squatters’ rights for their own personal gain. We will bring criminal charges and secure indictments not only for the unlawful occupancy, but also for any forged documents used in the commission of the crime. The law does not permit illegal residency and we will continue to prosecute such cases in Queens.”

She had developed severe kidney problems after contracting Lyme disease, despite being on medications meant to repel the ticks that cause it. Veterinarians weren’t sure she would survive.

Yet on Monday, Frankie was at the Westminster Kennel Club dog show, healthy and ready to compete. She would face off against over a dozen other Afghan hounds — including the winner of last month’s World Dog Show in Croatia — for a chance to advance to the next round of the United States’ most prestigious canine event.

“It was really tough,” Mary Ann Giordano said, her voice halting as she described Frankie’s eight-month-long ordeal. “But she made it.”

For all the pooch pageantry of Westminster — the coiffed poodles, the top-knotted toy dogs, the formality of dogs trotting around a ring — it’s also an illustration of the bond people form with dogs, and what each will do for the other.

Like setting up an array of box fans and even a portable dehumidifier to get a puli’s long, thick cords dry after a bath, a process that can take 24 hours, in Valarie Cheimis’ experience. The cords form naturally, though owners aid the process by separating them.

Why go through all that?

“These are fun dogs. They’re full of personality,” Cheimis said as she petted Csoki, one of her pulik (the proper plural), ahead of ring time.

Sure, the Hungarian herding breed can be stubborn and barky, Cheimis said, but Csoki also looks after her geese and chickens at home in Kingfield, Maine, even lying down next to the goslings.

Mister, a bloodhound who won a merit award in his breed Monday, also puts his breed’s ancient instincts to work. He’s qualified to trail missing people, though his calls so far have been resolved before they got into the field, said co-owner, breeder and handler Renee Wagner, of Niagara Falls, New York.

The 148th Westminster show kicked off Saturday with an agility competition — won by a mixed-breed dog for the first time since Westminster added the event in 2014. Nimble, the winner, was handled by Cynthia Hornor, who took the trophy with a border collie last year.

Monday marked the start of the traditional judging that leads to the best in show prize, to be awarded Tuesday night. Semifinals begin Monday night, pitting the winners of each breed against others in their “group,” such as hounds or herding dogs.

The 2,500-plus first-round entrants range from tiny Yorkshire terriers to towering great Danes. They include a newly added breed, the Lancashire heeler, represented Monday by a single contestant named Mando.

If he knew a lot was riding on his little shoulders, he didn’t show it as he appeared in the first-round ring and someone in the audience yelled, “Yay! History!”

“He just has a rock-star attitude,” handler Jessica Plourde said afterward.

The show also was a first for Alfredo Delgado and Maria Davila, who had traveled from Juncos, Puerto Rico, with their French bulldog, Duncan.

Their path started when Delgado’s brother found a lost Frenchie. It was soon reunited with its owner, but Delgado was intrigued by the breed.

Fast-forward some years, and he was in the Westminster ring as Duncan’s breeder, owner and handler, with Davila cheering him on.

“We made a dream come true to be here,” Davila said afterward. “To share with experienced people in the ring — that was awesome.”

Westminster routinely attracts a roster of dog showing’s heavy hitters. This year’s field includes Stache, a Sealyham terrier who won the National Dog Show televised last Thanksgiving, and Comet, a shih tzu who won the huge American Kennel Club National Championship that was televised on Dec. 31.

Comet is “just everything you would want in a shih tzu,” co-owner, breeder and handler Luke Ehricht said after Comet won his breed Monday morning. With a flowing coat like a vanilla-and-caramel ice cream sundae that’s melting onto the table, the dog looked up at his handler with the sweet expression that’s prized in the breed.

“He’s a very sweet, loving dog” who knows when it’s time to perform and when it’s time to relax, said Ehricht, of Monclova, Ohio.

Later, Frankie, the recovered Afghan hound, and her littermate Belle stood side-by-side in their breed’s ring. So did the Giordanos, an Annandale, New Jersey, couple who have been side-by-side since high school. David handled Frankie, while his wife led Belle.

Both dogs took jaunty spins around the ring, but neither won. Nor did the recent World Dog Show winner, named Zaida. The ribbon went to another highly ranked Afghan, named Louis.

“This breed’s supposed to be ‘the king of dogs,’ and he knows he is,” handler and co-owner Alicia Jones said.

Dylan Marino died Tuesday after police say he tried to steal a beer from a bodega in Rego Park. The United Bodegas of America said clerk Netesh Netesh chased Marino outside to get the drink back and during a scuffle, stabbed the 21-year-old.

“My child was murdered by a bodega employee over one beer,” said Kate DeSommes, Marino’s mother.

The clerk was arrested but shortly thereafter released while prosecutors say the investigation continues. The UBA claims the clerk acted in self-defense.

“It’s clear to everyone that this man was defending himself and his life could have been taken away,” said Fernando Mateo.

DeSommes blasted the UBA spokesman, whom she claims slandered her son as being violent.

“He was pursued by a bodega employee outside the store. It was absolutely, 100% not self-defense,” she said. “This tape has been published.”

News 4 viewed the video DeSommes is referring to, showing what appears to be the clerk first chasing Marino, then Marino chasing the clerk into the street. It is unclear what happened before Marino is stabbed. News 4 has not independently verified the video.

“The DA’s office right now, they’re accumulating video tape, trying to see exactly what happened,” said former prosecutor Michael Bachner. “If Mr. Marino was choking Mr. Netish, or using aggression against him, and Mr. Netesh believed he needed to use deadly physical force to protect himself, no jury in the world would convict.”

DeSommes is confident the clerk will be charged in her son’s murder, but her sights are set on a specific end goal.

“I do not want him to be incarcerated. I know that will ruin his life,” she said. Instead, she wants her son’s death to not have been in vain.

“Restorative justice is when the district attorney and the victim and the perpetrator and the perpetrator’s representatives come together and discuss the situation,” she said. “No one should be incarcerated at Rikers. It is a human atrocity.”

Marino’s funeral was scheduled for Saturday morning and DeSommes had invited formerly incarcerated Rikers inmates she may have helped to come by his pallbearers.

According to the NYPD, officers were called to the Sunnyside scene near 46th Street and Queens Boulevard around 9:30 p.m. for a report of a stabbing. Surveillance video showed two people in shorts – who appeared to be teenage girls – about to cross Queens Boulevard.

One girl wearing dark sneakers is seen crouching, appearing to pick up something from the ground and rummaging through her belongings. A fight appeared to break out between the two while they were in the crosswalk — just as their faces were off-camera. What sparked the fight wasn’t known.

Officers found the teenager stabbed in the neck. She was taken to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

Police later identified her as Sara Rivera, who lived with her family on 96th Street in Jackson Heights.

The other girl in dark sneakers was seen on video running away on Queens Boulevard, but the teenager was caught taken into custody at the scene. Police later said the 15-year-old, who was not immediately identified due to her age, was charged with second-degree murder and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon.

Her relationship to Rivera wasn’t clear. An ex-boyfriend of Rivera’s told NBC New York that she had been friends with the suspect, but they had a spotty relationship — though he said he never imagined it would end in such a violent manner.

“Sara would try to put her in check but I told her to relax just leave it alone she’s a little girl,” said Jasaiah Ortega, Rivera’s ex.

On Thursday, more than 100 teens who knew Rivera gathered at the spot under the 7 line where she was stabbed and killed, leaving balloons, flowers and heartfelt messages dedicated to her memory. Friends said Rivera was a student at nearby Queens Technical High School.

The investigation is ongoing.

Meanwhile, the transit advocacy group Passengers United condemned the violence and noted that the station doesn’t have surveillance cameras near the entrances — and at least some of the cameras it does have upstairs don’t work.

“That’s unacceptable. Unacceptable. A 17-year-old girl lost her life. Who’s gonna be next here?” asked Charlton D’Souza, the president of the group.

Police said 911 calls came in around 1:30 a.m. Saturday for an assault in progress along Atlantic Avenue in Richmond Hill. Responding officers found multiple gunshot victims at the “Volume Seventeen” venue, which hosts events like birthday parties, receptions and baby showers.

A 24-year-old man had been shot in the chest; he was rushed to Jamaica Hospital where he was ultimately pronounced dead. Two other men, ages 45 and 25, were also taken to a nearby hospital to be treated for a single gunshot each.

A short time later, according to police, a 43-year-old man arrived at Jamaica Hospital with two gunshot wounds to an arm and a third to his leg.

Surveillance video captured the sound of gunshots, just as a white car is seen speeding away from the area. Additional video from the scene shows detectives pouring through a crime scene littered with party decorations and more than 20 bullet casings.

Neighbors told News 4 that the venue typically hosts parties that get out of control.

“This place is a problem. Since it opened it’s a problem: fighting, drugs, gunshots,” Wasir Rasul, who has lived in the area for nearly 20 years, said. “I hope they close it down after this.”

Hours later, investigators were still searching for the shooter responsible. There was no information provided by police on what led up to the gunfire.

Win Rozario’s family called on the officers to be fired and charged with murder after the footage of the killing was made public by the state’s attorney general.

“The video that was released makes it clear that Win should be alive but the police came and murdered him in our kitchen without any care for him or us,” said a statement from Rozario’s mother, brother and father. “The police created a crisis and killed him in cold blood.”

NYPD Apr 20

Police kill man in Queens allegedly holding woman at knifepoint

Staten Island Mar 27

Retired NYPD cop shoots machete-wielding man in apparent Staten Island road rage fight

Times Square Feb 8

NYPD hunts gunman who fired at cops after Times Square store shooting

Attorney General Letitia James released footage from body cameras worn by Officers Salvatore Alongi and Matthew Cianfrocco as part of an investigation into the March 27 slaying in the family’s home in Queens. The attorney general is required by law to review any fatal encounter with law enforcement.

Police commanders at the time said the officers had no choice but to shoot Rozario when he came at them with a pair of scissors.

The scene depicted in two body camera videos is more complicated.

Police arrived at the family’s Queens home shortly before 2 p.m. and were greeted at the door by Rozario’s 17-year-old brother, who said his sibling was “having an episode” and didn’t know what he was doing.

The officers entered the house. Rozario, standing in the kitchen, grabbed a pair of scissors from a drawer then took a few quick steps toward the officers, prompting one to fire a Taser. Rozario’s mother held onto him protectively, then wrestled the scissors away.

The officers shouted at the mother to let go of him, using a profanity as they ordered her to get out of their way.

“Don’t shoot,” the mother, Notan Ava Costa, told officers after she set the scissors on a chair and stepped aside.

The situation quickly escalated as officers fired their Tasers again, and Rozario picked up the scissors and walks toward them. One officer then fired a handgun. It was unclear whether Rozario was hit. His mother rushed to him, followed by her younger son, who tried to pull her away.

“Please do not shoot my mom!” Rozario’s brother cried.

“Get her out of the way!” police shouted. Rozario’s mother and brother fell to the floor.

With the brother still holding onto his mother, Rozario, scissors in hand, appeared to take a step toward police and was shot. He stopped advancing. Three more shots were heard, each about a second apart, as Rozario flinched and staggered, his arms at his side but still holding the scissors. Eventually he fell forward to the floor.

“Don’t shoot! Don’t shoot!” his mother cried.

The NYPD said in a statement that it is cooperating with the investigation. The officers were placed on modified assignment, meaning they are not carrying a firearm, the statement said.

Chief of Patrol John Chell defended the officers’ actions, saying during a news conference on the day of the shooting that “this case was chaotic, fast-moving, and they had to defend themselves.” He said both officers had deployed their Tasers but did not say whether they both fired their guns.

Rozario’s family, in their statement, said “It’s been over a month since we lost Win and our hearts are broken. We feel his absence every day.”

The memorial statue to the late monarch was unveiled on April 21 in Oakham, England — a bronze monument of the queen in royal regalia with her cherished dogs at her feet.

An official celebration marked the unveiling of the statue created by sculptor Hywel Pratley, which stands near the town’s library, according to Rutland County Council‘s post on Instagram. The RCC wrote that the statue is the “first permanent memorial” to the late queen.

The ceremony was held on what would’ve been Queen Elizabeth’s 98th birthday. She died at 96 in 2022 after a 70-year run as Britain’s longest-reigning monarch.

The statue was commissioned by Dr. Sarah Furness, Lord-Lieutenant of Rutland, who appeared at the event along with other local dignitaries, high school bands and bagpipers, according to the RCC. The design for the corgi dogs was created by local children, the RCC stated.

“What most of us remember about Queen Elizabeth is her warmth,” Furness said in a speech, according to The New York Times. “By showing Queen Elizabeth’s love of dogs, we show her humanity.”

Funding for the statue was raised from donations by the public and local businesses, according to the BBC. The ceremony brought fans of Queen Elizabeth from around the country.

“I miss (the Queen), and I wanted to come and see what the statue was like,” spectator Jodie Paterson told the BBC.

The statue is the latest monument to the queen in the 18 months since her death. Another statue of the late monarch was unveiled at London’s Royal Albert Hall in December 2023.

This story first appeared on TODAY.com. More from TODAY:

• Royals release photo taken by Kate Middleton for Prince Louis’ 6th birthday
• A 6-year-old girl rushes into her burning house to save her family
• Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager share best fan responses to their ’Mama’s Done’ vow

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The incident appeared to unfold around 4 a.m. in Corona, near 103rd Street and Roosevelt Avenue, when a pair of officers out on patrol heard a commotion.

NYPD Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey said the cops heard the screams of a woman and observed a 65-year-old man armed with a knife. They approached the fight and engaged, giving the man orders to drop a small knife in his possession.

“The male doesn’t listen, the officers use the taser,” Maddrey explained at a press conference. “The taser does not work. The officer gives further commands and then discharge their weapons, which stops the male.”

The officers struck the man several times. He was transported to Elmhurst Hospital, but his injuries ultimately proved fatal and he was pronounced dead.

Investigators said the woman was not physically harmed during the exchange. The extent of the relationship between her and the knife-wielding man was not immediately known, Maddrey said.

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The attack happened around 2:50 a.m. on 94th Street in the Elmhurst section of Queens, according to the NYPD.

Police have not said what may have led up to the attack or if it was unprovoked, but did say officers recovered a knife on the scene.

The female victim, 22, was slashed in the right hand and the male victim, 43, was slashed in the forehead. Both victims were taken to Elmhurst General Hospital, police said.

Police are looking for the slasher who drove away from the scene on a moped. The investigation is ongoing.

The NYPD said its officers responded to a 911 call just before 9 p.m. The body of a man was pulled from the water by members of the FDNY.

Investigators said it wasn’t immediately clear how long the body had been in the water.

Police said the man’s identity was not being released until family members could be notified.

There were no arrests as of Saturday morning, and it wasn’t clear if the death was being investigated as a criminal matter.

The 16-year-old suspect charged in connection to Sunday’s attack and robbery outside a Queens church that left a woman fighting for her life in the hospital tried tried to hurt himself while in police custody, law enforcement sources said Friday.

Following his arrest on Thursday, sources said the teen took off his shirt and wrapped it around his neck while inside the 107th Precinct. Officers intervened before he could be seriously injured.

He faces charges of assault, robbery and grand larceny for the violent incident on April 7, which was captured on security camera video. It showed the 68-year-old victim, identified by her family on Thursday as Irene Tahliambouris, mere feet away from the front door of Saint Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church in Briarwood when suddenly the suspect who was following her threw her from the top step.

The woman landed on her back, smacking her head on the concrete sidewalk. As she lay there motionless, video showed the attacker rifling through her pockets, stealing her purse, running off and then stealing her car.

Detectives had been out canvassing for more evidence in the area of 152nd Street and 84th Road. Four days after the attack, police said that a 16-year-old had been arrested and charged with assault, robbery, grand larceny and possession of stolen property.

Due to the age of the attacker, his identity was not shared.

“The viciousness with which the defendant is accused of having committed the robbery at the church struck the city at its core. As alleged, he chose to rob an elderly woman by first pushing her down the stairs and then proceeded to take her purse and leave her to suffer while he took off in her car,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said in a statement.

The DA also alleges the teenage suspect stole a car in an unrelated robbery days earlier, on April 4, from a separate female victim.

“Horrible. I could not believe my eyes. Seeing what he did to this lady,” Rev. Konstantinos Kalogridis of St. Demetrios previously said. “She was coming to church to pray, to participate. I don’t know what kind of a person this is but evil. Pure evil.”

Parishioners helped the woman, who was taken to the hospital. Calling it a “brutal and senseless attack,” the family said in a statement that Tahliambouris suffered a skull fracture and a black eye, and that she was “fighting for her life” in the hospital still. They added that she was “showing signs of recognition, giving us hope.”

Rev. Kalogridis visited the victim in the hospital. He said the fact that she survived the harrowing attack is a miracle.

“She is such a sweet lady. She is a very humble low-key person,” the reverend said.

The family, meanwhile, criticized the state and city laws for high rates of criminal recidivism. They also praised law enforcement for continuing the efforts to bring the suspect to justice.

“We know that the District Attorney and the NYPD are giving this case the attention it deserves. We trust that they will take all necessary actions to bring the perpetrator to justice and uphold the safety of our community,” the family’s statement said.

Part of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway will be closed for repairs for the entire weekend, according to the city’s Department of Transportation, and it could lead to a traffic nightmare in downtown Brooklyn.

The Queens-bound BQE will be fully closed from Atlantic Avenue to Sands Street starting at 2 a.m. Saturday, and it will remain closed until 4 a.m. Monday, the DOT said. That includes a full closure between the Atlantic Avenue entrance ramp and the Manhattan Bridge exit ramp in the direction of Queens.

The repairs, which build on repair work conducted in October 2023, focus on new concrete and reinforcing steel bars being added at spans on the BQE near Clark Street and Grace Court as part of near-term work critical to extending the structure’s lifespan. A final, similar round of repairs is expected to occur on June 1 to 3.

“Just as we did successfully last fall, we continue to deliver critical repairs to the BQE to preserve its lifespan while minimizing the impact on the local community,” NYC DOT Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez said in a statement. “I encourage all New Yorkers to avoid the BQE in Brooklyn this weekend and to take mass transit.”

Here are the ramps that will be impacted by the closures:

Queens-Bound:

• 3^rd Ave entrance Ramp
• 6^th Ave entrance ramp
• Prospect Expressway Entrance Ramp
• Hamilton Avenue Entrance Ramp
• Atlantic Avenue Entrance Ramp
• Cadman Plaza Exit Ramp
• Brooklyn Bridge Exit Ramp
• Manhattan Bridge Exit Ramp

See detour maps and get more information here.

A teen suspect was charged in connection with an attack and robbery of a woman who was walking to Sunday Mass in Queens, according to police.

The violent incident on April 7 was captured on security camera video. It showed the 68-year-old victim, identified by her family on Thursday as Irene Tahliambouris, mere feet away from the front door of Saint Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church in Briarwood when suddenly the suspect who was following her threw her from the top step.

The woman landed on her back, smacking her head on the concrete sidewalk. As she lay there motionless, video showed the attacker rifling through her pockets, stealing her purse, running off and then stealing her car.

Detectives had been out canvassing for more evidence in the area of 152nd Street and 84th Road. Four days after the attack, police said that a 16-year-old had been arrested and charged with assault, robbery, grand larceny and possession of stolen property.

Due to the age of the attacker, his identity was not shared.

“Horrible. I could not believe my eyes. Seeing what he did to this lady,” Rev. Konstantinos Kalogridis of St. Demetrios previously said. “She was coming to church to pray, to participate. I don’t know what kind of a person this is but evil. Pure evil.”

Parishioners helped the woman, who was taken to the hospital. Calling it a “brutal and senseless attack,” the family said in a statement that Tahliambouris suffered a skull fracture and a black eye, and that she was “fighting for her life” in the hospital still. They added that she was “showing signs of recognition, giving us hope.”

Rev. Kalogridis visited the victim in the hospital. He said the fact that she survived the harrowing attack is a miracle.

“She is such a sweet lady. She is a very humble low-key person,” the reverend said.

The family, meanwhile, criticized the state and city laws for high rates of criminal recidivism. They also praised law enforcement for continuing the efforts to bring the suspect to justice.

“We know that the District Attorney and the NYPD are giving this case the attention it deserves. We trust that they will take all necessary actions to bring the perpetrator to justice and uphold the safety of our community,” the family’s statement said.

The New York City Council on Thursday approved a Willets Point redevelopment plan that will bring the city its first professional soccer stadium, along with nearly three new acres of public space, a hotel, retail and more.

The City Planning Commission has already approved the redevelopment plan, meaning the favorable vote from the council paved the way for that $780 million, privately financed 25,000 all-electric stadium to host Major League Soccer’s New York City Football Club near Citi Field in Queens to be completed by 2027. The soccer venue’s neighbors will include the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, where the U.S. Open is played.

In addition to the stadium, the redevelopment plan — which has been in the works for years — will bring 2,500 affordable housing units, an elementary school, 80,000 square feet of retail space, a hotel, a park and more as part of a 23-acre redevelopment project to transform Willets Point, long a gritty cluster of auto body shops. Council members also said the plan will create 15,000 jobs.

“We scored a major goal for NYC,” Mayor Eric Adams said surrounded by union members at a celebratory event at City Hall after Thursday’s vote. “Willets Point has been an eyesore for so many years.”

In a post on X, Adams said, “GOOOOOOOOOOOAL! The largest affordable public housing development in generations is coming to Willets Point! This means homes, jobs, and so much more for our community.”

Queens Borough President Donovan Richards Jr., earlier this year announced his recommendation to approve, with conditions, Phase II of the Willets Point redevelopment plan, which includes the stadium.

It won’t be ready for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which will take place in parts of the U.S., with the title game set for MetLife Stadium.

New York City Football Club of Major League Soccer, which won the championship in 2021, currently plays its home games at Yankee Stadium in The Bronx. The club’s owners — who include the Yankees and United Arab Emirates Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the owner the Manchester City Football Club — will foot the bill for the new stadium.

But the city’s Independent Budget Office concluded that the actual cost to taxpayers for the stadium could be $516 million spread over the 49-year term of NYCFC’s lease. The analysis is based on what the city would have received in property taxes had it sold the land to the stadium’s developers instead of leasing it.

The development team includes Related Companies and Sterling Equities, which is partly controlled by the Wilpon family, who used to own the Mets.

Richards previously highlighted the importance of having this part of Queens, once called the “Valley of Ashes” because it was an industrial area, become a valuable space for the community.

“Through the decades, many plans have been imagined at Willets Point and only one has been approved,” Richards wrote. “I am proud to see the former ‘Valley of Ashes’ transform into better housing, schooling and open space, but I must see material and serious commitments to the surrounding communities of Corona, Flushing and East Elmhurst.”

Not mentioned at Thursday’s rally was a possible casino, which part of a separate proposal submitted by Mets owner Steve Cohen. He is vying for one of three casino licenses set to be awarded downstate.

What is included in Phase II?

Phase II of the Willets Point redevelopment plan includes 1,400 units of affordable housing, a 25,000-seat soccer stadium, a 250-room hotel, 80,000 square feet of commercial retail space, nearly 3 acres of public open space and more.

Specific conditions laid out in Richards’ recommendation include a written agreement from the development team that housing affordability levels in Phase II of the project be comparable to Phase I — which will stipulate a commitment to having more than half of the 1,400 units be available at or below 80 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI) — and a full list of community benefits the applicant team has pledged throughout the ULURP process.

It wasn’t immediately clear which of his conditions, if any, were met as of Thursday.

What are the recommendations?

1. Local hiring: Minority- and women-owned businesses and area residents should make up at least 30 percent of contracts and hires, with the applicant team providing quarterly reports to the borough president, local councilmembers and area community boards. The applicant team should also work with the borough president and local councilmembers to determine a mutually agreeable set-aside for local street vendors and concessionaires within and surrounding the soccer stadium.
2. Community partnerships: Discounted NYCFC match tickets for local residents.
3. Area infrastructure improvements: The applicant team should work with the NYC Department of Parks and Recreation to identify areas in and around Flushing Meadows Corona Park that are in need of capital improvements, such as the Flushing Promenade, area sports fields and playgrounds.

Richardson also recommends that no NYCFC games be scheduled on days when either the New York Mets are playing a home game at Citi Field or when the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center is in use, to avoid excess congestion.

Read more recommendations here.

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“It’s really frustrating. Stunned. It’s a really traumatic experience,” Bae told NBC New York.

That’s because while they waited for renovation permits, someone broke into their home on Francis Lewis Boulevard in Flushing — then stayed there. Photos showed piled up bags of belongings that the squatters kept with them, and they even grew marijuana plants.

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But when Bae called police? The squatters said they were the ones who lived there. 

“Owning a home, that’s the American dream. But some people have turned it into the American nightmare,” said New York State Sen. John Liu.

That’s why Liu is sponsoring a new bill that will clarify “one who enters onto a property or building without title, right, or permission, and therefore is not subject to the same rights and protections of lawful tenants.”

There is another proposed change that has come up in the New York City Council. The bill would change tenant protections from kicking in at 30 days, as it currently stands, to 180 days.

NYC Mayor Eric Adams said protections were designed to prevent unfair evictions. But now those protections are being abused by those looking to take advantage.

“There’s a reason squatter laws are in place,” Adams said. “Some people are starting to exploit what those reasons are.”

While it’s unclear how widespread of a problem it really is, lawmakers and police have said reports of squatting are on the rise. 

“It’s up to us to periodically take a look at the laws find the loopholes and close them,” said State Sen. Toby Ann Stavisky, of Queens.

For Dr. Bae, getting a court order to evict the squatters took seven months. All because the squatters had fake IDs that listed the Bae’s address as their own. 

“They claimed they had been there since October. We couldn’t really kick them out,” Bae said.

Now that the eviction is finally done, the homeowners hope to finish the construction and move in come the fall.

The man accused in the killing of a beloved Queens teenager will spend decades behind bars after being sentenced on Wednesday.

Sean Brown was sentenced to 30 years in prison: 25 years for manslaughter in the shooting death of 14-year-old Aamir Griffin, a Cardozo High School basketball standout, in 2019, and and additional five years for an unrelated gun charge.

Brown, who was 18-year-old at the time of the shooting death, fired three times, according to Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz, from a .38 caliber gun, with one of the bullets striking Griffin in the torso. The reputed gang member fired off several shots at the basketball court, mistaking Griffin for a rival gang member whom Brown believed had stolen his phone.

Instead, Griffin was shot and killed as he was practicing on the courts at the Baisley Park Houses.

“People make mistakes and I know this is one mistake you wish you never made,” Shaneqwa Griffin, Aamir’s mother, said to Brown at the sentencing. “You took my son from me. I haven’t sleep in four or five years.”

Griffin’s grandmother also spoke, describing Aamir as a compassionate teen with dreams of making it to the NBA.

“May God have mercy on your soul for the pain and suffering you have inflicted upon us,” said Quaintana Griffin.

During Wednesday’s sentencing, Brown tried to withdraw his plea deal again, which Judge Kenneth Holder called a “dilatory tactic.” Brown said he was trying to buy time to get a new lawyer.

On March 14, he participated in jury selection, was going to go to trial and decided to accept the plea deal then. Earlier this year in January, Brown rejected a plea deal and asked for a trial.

Ultimately, on Wednesday Holder denied the plea deal withdrawal and moved forward with sentencing. The judge also denounced the rise in youth offenders responsible for shootings. He said Brown is the result of the culture of gang violence and that’s he going to have a lot of time to think about his actions.

“The area of South Jamaica seems to be a shooting gallery,” Holder said.

Surveillance video of the tragic Oct. 26 shooting shows Brown fleeing the scene in the moments after the shooting, even admitting he hit his rival in the head.

“But the person he thought he killed was not the teenager whose last breath was on this basketball court,” Katz said.

Brown was subsequently arrested in California, and was later returned to New York City to face charges.

The South Jamaica community has worked tirelessly to keep Griffin’s spirit alive in the years since his death, even completing a renovation of the basketball court where he died with photos of the teen.

After the sentencing, Aamir’s mother was asked if she felt some sense of closure.

“Little bit. Not much. It doesn’t change the situation. It doesn’t change the fact that my son is no longer here,” she said.

Law enforcement officers converged on a Queens intersection where a grenade was found outside a Chase Bank Tuesday, authorities said.

No injuries were reported.

Traffic was halted in the area, near 112th Street and Liberty Avenue in South Richmond Hill, after a call about the suspicious device came in around 11:20 a.m. A cleaning crew was working in a building when they saw what looked like a grenade inside a plastic bag, so they brought it outside and called police to alert them about the potentially explosive discovery.

A bomb squad truck and other emergency vehicles were seen parked under an elevated subway track. The MTA said trains on the A line were bypassing that station as a precaution for more than an hour, but regular service resumed shortly after 2 p.m.

Law enforcement sources said investigators were trying to determine just how the device got to the location. The bomb squad said the grenade was inert. It was taken to a secured location in the Bronx for a closer look.

A police investigation is ongoing.

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A 68-year-old woman on her way to Sunday Mass in Queens was attacked by a man who proceeded to rob her as she lays motionless, police say — and surveillance video shows the harrowing ordeal.

The surveillance video shows the woman is mere feet away from the front door of Saint Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church in the Briarwood section, when suddenly a man who is following her throws her from the top step. The woman lands on her head and while motionless the video shows her attacker rifling through her pockets, stealing her purse, running off and then stealing her car — a 2006 Nissan Altima.

“Horrible. I could not believe my eyes. Seeing what he did to this lady,” Rev. Konstantinos Kalogridis of St. Demetrios said. “She was coming to church to pray, to participate. I don’t know what kind of a person this is but evil. Pure evil.”

Parishioners helped the woman, who was taken to the hospital. Rev. Kalogridis visited the victim Sunday. He said the fact that she survived the attack is a miracle.

“She is in stable condition,” he said, adding: “She is such a sweet lady. She is a very humble low-key person.”

Detectives have been out canvassing for more evidence in the area of 152nd Street and 84th Road. As police search for the suspect, Kalogridis has a message.

“My message is for him to surrender to the police and repent for this grievous sin he made,” he said. Repentance and surrender and do it as soon as possible.”

Police are still searching for the attacker.

The incident occurred shortly before 5 a.m. on Steinway Street between 25th and 28th avenues, according to the FDNY.

A red sedan was heading southbound on Steinway Street when it veered onto the sidewalk — striking an outside dining area, one parked car and at two women pedestrian (one 22-year-old and another 32-year-old), who were taken to Elmhurst Hospital in stable condition, according to police.

The driver, identified by police as 30-year-old Whitney Walker, was arrested at the scene and charged with vehicular assault, reckless endangerment, criminal mischief and DWI, according to police. Attorney information for Walker was not immediately known.

According to the NYPD, at around 5:20 p.m. on 243 Street, in the Rosedale neighborhood, the alleged shooter and a 49-year-old individual had a verbal dispute which lead to the 49-year-old being shot in the arm. As the victim tried to leave, the individual attempted to shoot them a second time but missed and fled.

The victim sustained non-life-threatening injuries and was transported by EMS to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center in stable condition.

The individual being sought is described as a male with a medium build, and black hair. He was last seen wearing a waist length black jacket, tan jogging suit and white sneakers.

Police urge anyone with information in regard to this incident is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782).

The solemn cry of bagpipes and drums hailed Diller’s arrival at Saint Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church in Massapequa Park.

“The city is mourning a cop. The tens of thousands of police officers outside are mourning a brother in arms. But Stephanie and Ryan are mourning their everything,” said Rev. Michael Duffy, naming Diller’s surviving wife and 1-year-old son in a homily delivered inside the church.

Diller’s widow celebrated his dedication as a father, police officer and husband.

“He wasn’t the type to sugarcoat anything, so I won’t sugarcoat this. This is devastating. It’s a devastating and tragic loss,” Stephanie Diller said.

Diller, who received four NYPD recognitions in his three years with the department, is survived by his wife, Stephanie, and 1-year-old son, Ryan.

Diller was shot and killed during a Queens traffic stop earlier this week. It marked the first slaying of an NYPD officer in two years.

The services Saturday follow two days of wakes this week that drew thousands of visitors, including former President Donald Trump, Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams.

Police say Diller and his partner were investigating an illegally parked SUV when a passenger in the car, Guy Rivera, shot Diller below his ballistic vest. Diller’s partner returned fire, wounding Rivera.

Adams said at the funeral Saturday that even after he had been shot, Diller fought back and disarmed Rivera.

“He ran towards danger, taking risks, making arrests and undoubtedly saving lives,” Adams said.

Rivera is charged with first degree murder and other crimes, and the driver of the SUV is charged with weapons offenses. Attorneys representing the men have not responded to requests for comment.

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Kareem Phillips was arraigned Friday, facing an 11-count indictment charging him with two counts of second-degree attempted murder, first-degree assault, attempted assault and weapon possession, Queens DA Melinda Katz said. The charges stem from incidents on March 16 in which he used a knife to go after three people in the area of 31st Avenue and 54th Street in Woodside.

The 31-year-old Phillips started his attacks just before 12:30 p.m., according to the charging documents, when he moved his wheelchair behind a 56-year-old man who was getting out of his parked car.

As the victim was getting out, Phillips allegedly stabbed him in the back with a knife. The man then turned around to see Phillips holding a knife, then took off. Phillips went after him, but the victim went to a friend’s building nearby and called police, according to the DA’s office.

About ten minutes later, as a woman was jogging by him, Phillips took out his knife and slashed the 46-year-old woman’s arm, the charges state. The woman reported the incident to police after she got stitches to treat her injury.

Immediately after cutting the runner, Phillips is accused of following another woman, a 69-year-old, as she crossed the street. He grabbed the victim’s arm, causing her to fall to the ground, then punched her in the face before stabbing her in the face and stomach with a knife, the DA’s office said. The woman was taken to the hospital in critical condition.

When police arrived at the intersection where Phillips had gone after the victims, officers saw him swinging two kitchen knives, according to the DA. He allegedly threw one of them at the officers, who saw that the knife’s blade was covered in what appeared to be blood.

Attorney information for Phillips was not immediately clear.

If convicted, Phillips faces up to 65 years in prison. His next court appearance is scheduled for April 25.