12 THE QUEENS COURIER • FEBRUARY 10, 2022 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
police beat COMPILED BY BILL PARRY
113th Precinct
Jamaica, St. Albans, Hollis,
Springfi eld Gardens, South
Ozone Park, South Jamaica,
Addisleigh Park and Locust
Manor
Jamaica shooter charged
with attempted murder
of three men
A Jamaica man was arrested on Jan.
27 and charged with multiple crimes in
the shootings of three men in December.
Police charged 24-year-old Jasiah Bruce
of 130th Avenue with three counts of
attempted murder, assault, criminal possession
of a weapon, drug possession
charges and other crimes for the incident
that occurred around 3:30 p.m. on
Saturday, Dec. 18, according to the NYPD.
Th e three men were reported sitting
inside a white Jeep Cherokee that was
parked in front of a Walgreens at 165-02
Baisley Blvd. when two men approached
the vehicle. One of the men pulled out a
fi rearm and fi red into the vehicle multiple
times, police said.
A 29-year-old man suff ered a gunshot
wound to the head; a 31-year-old victim
suff ered a gunshot wound to the back;
and a 29-year-old man was shot in his
back, according to the NYPD. Th e two
men fl ed the crime scene in a red 2012
Ford Focus that was last seen traveling
towards Guy R. Brewer Boulevard.
All three victims were transported
by EMS to Jamaica Hospital Medical
Center in stable condition, according
to police.
Th e investigation is ongoing.
115th Precinct
Jackson Heights, East Elmhurst
and North Corona
Suspect sought in Jackson
Heights stabbing
Police from the 115th Precinct in
Jackson Heights are looking for a suspect
who allegedly stabbed a man on the
morning of Wednesday, Jan. 26.
Th e two men were engaged in a verbal
dispute just before 7 a.m. at the corner
of 85th Street and Roosevelt Avenue
when the assailant pulled out a knife
and stabbed the 52-year-old victim three
times in his arm, police said.
Th e victim called 911 later that morning
from his home and was transported
by EMS to New York-Presbyterian
Queens Hospital where he received
stitches to close his wounds.
Th e NYPD released surveillance video
of the suspect who was wearing a lightcolored
jacket over a gray hooded sweatshirt
with a white baseball cap, white
pants and dark sneakers.
No arrests have been made. Th e investigation
is ongoing.
Anyone with information in regard
to the identity of the suspects is asked
to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers
Hotline at 800-577-TIPS (8477) or for
Spanish, 888-57-PISTA (74782). Th e
public can also submit their tips by logging
onto the CrimeStoppers website at
nypdcrimestoppers.com, or on Twitter
@NYPDTips.
112th Precinct
Forest Hills and Rego Park
Homeless man indicted in two
elevator attacks inside Forest
Hills apartment buildings: DA
A knife-wielding homeless man was
indicted by a Queens grand jury for
attacking two women inside elevators
in separate incidents in Forest Hills last
month.
Ralph Toro, 62, was arraigned Th ursday,
Jan. 27, before Queens Supreme Court
Justice Ushir Pandit-Durant on a sixcount
indictment charging him with
attempted robbery, sexual abuse, criminal
possession and menacing, according to
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz.
According to charges, Toro, a Level 3
registered sex off ender living in a shelter
at the Holiday Inn Express near Flushing
Meadows Corona Park, allegedly stood
inside of an elevator on the morning of
Dec. 17 with a 28-year-old woman in an
apartment building on 75th Street.
When the doors opened, Toro began
to exit the elevator, then suddenly turned
around and allegedly pulled out a knife
while demanding money from the
woman, according to the DA. He reached
into her jacket pockets. Th e victim shoved
the defendant away from her and fl ed.
Katz said that around noon on the same
day, Toro followed a 51-year-old woman
into an elevator inside of an apartment
building on 108th Street. Toro allegedly
pulled out a knife, demanded that the victim
give him money and blocked her from
exiting the elevator.
As Toro continued to demand money
from the woman, she informed him that
she had no cash and emptied the contents
of her pocketbook onto the fl oor of
the elevator, according to the charges. Th e
defendant, while still holding the knife,
allegedly put his hand down the victim’s
pants and sexually assaulted her. Th e victim
tried to fi ght him off and the defendant
then fl ed the location.
Katz said the second incident was captured
on video surveillance. Detectives
from the 112th Precinct in Forest Hills
were able to locate additional surveillance
video from various sources and
traced Toro’s movements to the Corona
shelter, located at 113-10 Horace Harding
Expy., less than one mile from the second
incident.
Toro was taken into custody by detectives
aft er employees at the shelter identifi
ed him from still photos taken from the
surveillance video, according to the DA.
“Th e defendant is accused of committing
two separate, terrifying elevator
attacks — approximately an hour apart,
on the same day — inside diff erent Forest
Hills apartment buildings,” Katz said.
“As alleged, the defendant waited for the
women to be alone and in a confi ned
space to pull out a knife and attack them.”
Justice Pandit-Usher ordered Toro to
return to court on March 3. If convicted,
he faces up to 16 years to life in prison.
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