4 The Queens Courier • august 8, 2013 for breaking news visit www.queenscourier.com Need To See A Doctor Can’t Wait? IMMEDIATE MEDICAL CARE THE COURIER/Photo by Melissa Chan Aleksandar Dikov and his wife, Yingyi Li, snapped this happy photo together in October 2012. Li, six months pregnant, was killed by a falling tree in Kissena Park. WE TREAT MOST COMMON MEDICAL CONDITIONS INCLUDING: Orthopedic Injuries · Sprains & Fractures · Suturing Wounds, Burns & Cuts · On-Site Digital X-Rays FIRST+MED – GLENDALE 82-17 Woodhaven Blvd. Glendale, NY 11385 718-805-9581 Mon.-Fri.: 9am-7pm Sat. & Sun.: 9am-3pm Photo Courtesy of NYPD Police released photos of a person wanted for questioning in the stabbing of a Woodhaven teen. WE SPECIALIZE IN BEING OPEN Winner 2013 WE NOW ACCEPT ALL BC/BS PLANS. OTHER INSURANCES INCLUDE: GHI, GHI ACCESS, AETNA, CIGNA, HIP, VYTRA, MEDICARE, EMBLEM HEALTH, HEALTHNET GUARDIAN, MAGNICARE, POSTAL, W/C, NO FAULT UNITED HEALTH CARE, EXCEPT COMMUNITY AND ALL OXFORD, EXCEPT MOSAIC Best Urgent Care FIRST+MED – BAYSIDE 191-20 Northern Blvd. Flushing, NY 11358 718-224-8855 Mon.-Fri.: 8am-9pm Sat. & Sun.: 8am-7pm st of the 2013 THE QUEENS QueensCourier.com Place FIRST+MED POLICE HOPE PIX HELP NAB PERP BY LIAM LA GUERE lguerre@queenscourier.com Police have released new photos of a person wanted for questioning in the brutal stabbing of a Woodhaven teen last week. The pictures, circulated on Tuesday, August 6, are the latest actions taken by police to catch the suspect, who violently stabbed Natasha Martinez, 17, nearly a dozen times while she was returning home from work on Monday, July 29 at approximately 11:30 p.m. The perpetrator stabbed Martinez in her back and torso, cops said, and she was rushed to Jamaica Hospital. Martinez is still in the hospital in stable condition, according to authorities. Residents around the area are frightened about the incident and hope the suspect is caught soon. “For 22 years I’ve been living here and this is the first time I’ve been scared,” said Niki Rampaul. A black male with a light-colored hooded sweatshirt and dark jeans is seen in the new pictures released. In early reports witnesses described the attacker as approximately 5’6” tall and 150 pounds. On Monday, August 5 police said they had a man in custody and were questioning him about the crime. That person was later released and no charges were filed. Cops also released a video of a man believed to have a connection with the stabbing. Additionally, signs have been posted around the neighborhood, detailing a $12,000 reward for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the suspect. NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly said the crime may be connected to another stabbing a few neighborhoods away. “We’re seeing if there is a pattern here,” Kelly said last week, referring to Kerline Denizard, 36, who was seriously wounded when a vicious attacker cut her neck and torso with a knife in Queens Village in June. Like Martinez, Denizard survived the attack. Neighbors who have lived in Woodhaven for more than a decade said they have seen a decline in community. “You just see different type of people,” said resident Linda Sanchez. “They don’t care about where they live.” Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS PUSH TO INSPECT TREES AS FAMILY MOURNS MOM-TO-BE BY MELISA CHAN mchan@queenscourier.com The city is inspecting the felled tree that killed a 30-year-old expectant mother in Flushing as her family makes arrangements to mourn her. “They’re just distraught,” said attorney Anthony Como, who spoke on behalf of the grieving family. “Right now, we’re just trying to investigate to find out what happened, how something like this could occur, and obviously to get some answers at this point.” Yingyi Li, who was six months pregnant with a baby girl, was sitting on a bench in Kissena Park around 6:30 p.m. on Sunday, August 4 when a fallen tree struck her from behind, police said. The 50-foot oak tree snapped eight feet above the ground, city officials said. The Parks Department said it was thoroughly examining the tree’s condition. It was 70 years old, said spokesperson Arthur Pincus. Expert arborists who are unaffiliated with the department said the oak, which typically can live for 400 years, had signs of ongoing decay and was hollow in the base. “The wood strength that is needed to keep the tree upright was no longer there,” said Carsten Glaeser, a Flushing-based tree consultant. Li had been married to Aleksandar Dikov, 20, for a little more than a year, their lawyer and neighbors said. “The two of them were always together, very happy,” said Christina Leib. “She was very loved.” The pair was living in Flushing with Dikov’s parents, who were too heartbroken to speak to reporters. “They lost their first and only grandchild,” Como said. Li owned her own clothing business in Flushing, the attorney said. She met Dikov, a military man, at the Flushing YMCA. “She was a beautiful girl, so beautiful,” said neighbor Farida Yesmin. “I’m so upset. I can’t even explain.” Congressmember Grace Meng said she intervened with Customs and Border Protection to allow Li’s father, Zhong Liang Li, to fly in from China. His American visa was set to expire while he was traveling, Meng said. Arrangements for Li’s uncle and a family friend were also arranged. At least 13 people have been injured or killed by city trees in the last two months, said Geoffrey Croft, president of NYC Park Advocates. The Parks Department said there were six zone inspections this year in Kissena Park, including one in June. There are more than two million trees on city streets and inside parks. The department is in the process of contracting an independent tree consultant to review all tree management procedures, a spokesperson said. Croft and State Senator Tony Avella said the city should suspend its Million Tree Program and use the funds for tree maintenance. “These tragic accidents can no longer be thought of as ‘acts of God,’” Avella said. SOMETHING’S FISHY BY CRISTABELLE TUMOLA ctumola@queenscouruier.com Snakes on a plane? How about shark on the subway? Straphangers got a shocking surprise on Wednesday, August 7 when a dead shark was discovered on a Queens-bound N train. The conductor aboard the train reported the deceased animal around 12:30 a.m., then isolated the subway car and the train went on to the Ditmars Boulevard stop, according to the MTA. Once the train was at the station, the shark was placed in a garbage bag and thrown away in the trash. Isvett Verde noticed the shark when she got on the train at the 8th Street station shortly after midnight and smelled something “extremely fishy.” “I thought I’d seen it all, but even that was a bit much,” she said. “I have no idea how it got there or how long it had been there.” Photo courtesy of Isvett Verde
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