Search Results for: Brooklyn
Three Indicted for 2019 Stabbing Death of 17-Year-Old in Queens
Three Indicted for 2019 Stabbing Death of 17-Year-Old in Queens
**Queens, NY** – Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz has announced the indictment of Tianna Benjamin, Charles Gillespie, and Kyra Tyrell by a grand jury in connection with the murder of 17-year-old Talasia Cuffie in November 2019. The charges include murder, weapon possession, and conspiracy. Cuffie was attacked following a memorial basketball game for another victim, Aamir Griffin, unrelated to her death. The attack was driven by a mistaken belief that Cuffie was pregnant with Gillespie’s child.
According to the DA’s statements, Cuffie was persuaded to visit a residential block by the defendants and then stabbed in the abdomen and groin. She was left severely injured on the sidewalk and later died in the hospital. The Queens District Attorney’s Office emphasized its dedication to seeking justice for Cuffie and her family.
The individuals charged are Benjamin, aged 29, from Jamaica; Gillespie, aged 24, from Jamaica; and Tyrell, aged 22, from Brooklyn. They face charges of murder in the second degree, criminal possession of a weapon, and conspiracy. Benjamin and Tyrell
Four Plead Guilty in New York City Public Schools Bid Rigging
**New York, NY** – Four defendants, including the companies Transcend BS LLC and Clark & Garner LLC and their respective owners, admitted guilt in a bid rigging case in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. The case involves procurement consulting services for New York City Public Schools.
On Tuesday and Wednesday, Transcend BS LLC and its owner, Victor A. Garrido, based in Peekskill, New York, along with Clark & Garner LLC and its owner, Donald Clark Garner II, from Brooklyn, New York, pleaded guilty to violating Section 1 of the Sherman Act. This violation involves manipulating bids related to contracts for services with New York City schools.
Court documents reveal that from November 2020 to at least January 2023, Garrido, Garner, and their companies submitted false bids, making Transcend appear as the lowest bidder. The scheme resulted in over $707,000 in work orders for NYC Public Schools, with an estimated loss of $141,511 suffered by the NYC Department of Education.
Beyond the bid rigging, Garrido and Garner have agreed to repay the New York State Department of Labor for improperly received unemployment benefits. They previously worked for NYC Public Schools before establishing
MS-13 Leader Francisco Javier Roman-Bardales Arraigned on Multiple Charges
MS-13 Leader Arraigned on Multiple Charges
**Brooklyn, NY** – A leader of the MS-13 gang, Francisco Javier Roman-Bardales, was arraigned earlier today on charges related to directing the gang’s illegal activities in the U.S., El Salvador, and other countries over two decades. Roman-Bardales, a 47-year-old from Ahuachapán, El Salvador, had been a fugitive for nearly three years and was recently apprehended and expelled by Mexican authorities.
Roman-Bardales is accused of holding a significant leadership position within MS-13’s organizational structure, which spans several countries. In the related case of United States v. Henriquez, et al., a grand jury previously indicted 14 members. Extradition requests for 11 defendants have been submitted and are pending.
The indictment alleges activities that include violent acts aimed at influencing Salvadoran government policies and expanding territory through intimidation and violence. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York has prosecuted numerous MS-13 members, accounting for over 80 murders in the region since 2009.
Roman-Bardales faces multiple charges, including racketeering and narco-terrorism conspiracies. He was