FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM FEBRUARY 10, 2022 • THE QUEENS COURIER 3
Whitestone community mourns death of beloved deli co-owner
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
cmohamed@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Th e Whitestone community is mourning
the loss of a longtime neighborhood
resident who befriended everyone with
his infectious laughter, love and kindness.
Mario Polito, 44, of Tony’s Beechhurst
Deli, died unexpectedly of a massive heart
attack on Saturday, Jan. 29. Polito is survived
by his wife, Tania Carucci-Polito,
and his 7-year-old daughter, Gianna
Marie.
Angelo Polito remembered his older
brother as a kind person who loved
everyone.
“People loved him. He was one of those
guys who was always happy, having a good
time, and trying to help people whenever
he could,” Polito said. “Any kid loved him,
and Mario was friends with everyone, no
matter where they were from.”
At Tony’s Beechhurst Deli, located at
11-18 154th St., Polito and his family have
been serving Italian deli food like no other
for the past 30 years. His Italian-born parents,
Emilio and Josephine, worked tirelessly
to make Tony’s into the neighborhood
staple that it is today, along with
their three sons — Tommy, Mario and
Angelo — who all work in the deli.
According to Alfredo Molinari, a longtime
friend of Polito, anyone that walked
into the deli knew the family, especially
Mario, who knew everyone’s name and
made 10 sandwiches at a time.
“Th e whole family is wonderful, and
Mario, he’s an icon — the way he talks.
He’s amazing, and was like a big fi recracker.
He loved everyone,” Molinari said.
Paul Anteri, another longtime friend
of Polito, remembered Mario as a great
brother and father.
“My kids would go to Tony’s and
they’d see Mario. He looked out for
them. His smile was infectious and he
made everyone feel like family. It was
easy to fall in love with him,” Anteri
said. “It’s just important to remember
that he’s a staple in the community.
Everywhere he went, everyone knew
Mario. He had a very strong exterior,
but a soft interior.”
In honor of their late friend, Molinari
and Anteri launched a GoFundMe campaign
two days ago to give back to
Polito’s daughter, Gianna Marie, for her
college education.
According to Molinari and Anteri,
their goal was to raise $50,000. To date,
their campaign has surpassed that goal,
raising a total of $70,653.
“I said we gotta do something. He has
done so much for all of our children
in the neighborhood. We launched the
GoFundMe only to give back in some
way for his daughter to know how many
lives her father impacted in the community,
especially for all of the kids. We are
giving back for what he’s done for us and
all of the families,” Molinari said.
Molinari added, “Mario will be loved
and missed. We are all grateful and
thankful for having him in our lives. I’m
so glad I was able to meet him at such a
young age and watch him grow and continue
to be the person he always was and
never changed. I loved him like a brother.
My family and I loved him.”
In memory of Polito, a candlelight
vigil was held outside of Tony’s Deli on
Tuesday, Feb. 1. A wake was held on
Wednesday, Feb. 2, at Gleason’s Funeral
Home, located at 10-25 150th St., and
the funeral was held on Th ursday, Feb.
3, at St. Luke’s Church, located at 16-34
Clintonville St.
Queens cops will not be charged in 2020 taser death of Whitestone man: AG
BY BILL PARRY
bparry@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
NYPD offi cers from the 109th Precinct
in Flushing have been cleared in the death
of George Zapantis, at his Whitestone
home in 2020, New York Attorney General
Letitia James announced Friday, Feb. 4.
James said that her Offi ce of Special
Investigation (OSI) had completed its
“exhaustive investigation” into the death
of Zapantis and concluded that the evidence
does not indicate any NYPD offi -
cer involved in the incident committed
any crimes. OSI’s review of the incident
included footage from police body-worn
cameras, civilian cellphone video footage,
interviews with witnesses and other forms
of evidence.
According to the investigation, on the
evening of June 21, 2020, members of the
NYPD responded to a 911 call regarding
a man with a gun inside a private residence
in Whitestone. Neighbors told the
offi cers there was a confrontation with
29-year-old George Zapantis, but said
there was no gun involved. Offi cers spoke
with Zapantis at length through the door
to his home. Th ey could see through the
windows of his home that he was dressed
in gladiator attire, including a helmet,
shield and sword.
Offi cers called for the emergency
services unit and continued talking
to Zapantis to de-escalate the
situation. Zapantis became agitated
and broke through the
door of his home and physically
engaged the offi cers. Th e
offi cers attempted to restrain
Zapantis with handcuff s, and during a
minutes-long struggle, used tasers three
times, according to the OSI report.
Zapantis became unresponsive aft er the
fi nal taser use.
Emergency medical services,
who had been standing
by, attempted lifesaving
measures and transported
Zapantis to NewYork-
Presbyterian Hospital,
where he was pronounced
dead about 50 minutes
later. Th e medical examiner
concluded the cause
of death was cardiac
arrest due to dilated
cardiomyopathy
during physical
restraint by
police, including
conducted
electrical
weapon use.
U n d e r
New York’s
jus t i f i c a -
tion law, one
may use physical force to defend oneself
against physical force used by another.
In a criminal case, if a person raises
the defense of justifi cation, the prosecutor
must disprove justifi cation and beyond a
reasonable doubt.
OSI analyzed this case in light of the
law of justifi cation and concluded that a
prosecutor would not be able to disprove
beyond a reasonable doubt that the offi -
cers’ conduct was justifi ed: the evidence
indicates the offi cers used reasonable
physical force in response to the physical
force used by Zapantis. As a result of the
facts and circumstances of this case, OSI
will not seek charges in this matter, the
report concluded.
“Our offi ce is committed to examining
each and every case thoroughly, fairly and
transparently,” James said. “Based on an
extensive review of the facts in this case,
OSI determined that the offi cers involved
took appropriate measures fi rst to deescalate
the situation, and ultimately were
legally justifi ed in their actions. Despite
that conclusion, the Zapantis family is still
coping with the tragic loss of a loved one,
and I extend my deepest condolences to
his entire family.”
QNS fi le photo
Attorney General Letitia
James announced
that following an
“exhaustive
investigation,”
NYPD offi cers
will not be
charged
with the
2020 death
of George
Zapantis
at his
Whitestone
home.
Photo courtesy of the Polito family
Mario Polito, 44, of Tony’s Beechhurst Deli, died unexpectedly of a massive heart attack on Saturday,
Jan. 29.
/WWW.QNS.COM
link
link
link
link
