4 THE QUEENS COURIER • AUGUST 17, 2017 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
Teens have Sept.
court date for Little
Neck school burglary
BY ROBERT POZARYCKI
rpozarycki@qns.com / @robbpoz
Five teenagers accused of breaking into a
Catholic school in Little Neck and stealing
laptop computers and tablets from a safe will
be in courtroom rather than a classroom in
September, police announced on Aug. 11.
Law enforcement sources said the burglary
occurred sometime between 9:30 p.m. on Aug.
5 and 2 a.m. the following morning at Divine
Wisdom Catholic Academy located at 45-11
245th St., near Alameda Avenue.
According to law enforcement sources, an
employee of the school arrived there on Aug.
6 and discovered that an entryway into the
school was unlocked. Once inside, the worker
also found that the door to the computer lab
had been left open.
Moments later, authorities said, the employee
went into the computer lab and found that a
safe were computer equipment was stored had
been opened, and 50 devices — including 29
iPad tablets and 21 Chromebook laptop computers
— had been removed. Police estimated
the value of the stolen devices to be in excess
of $15,000.
Th e 111th Precinct responded to a call about
the burglary, and the 111th Precinct Detective
Squad launched an investigation that led to the
arrest on Aug. 9 of three Little Neck residents:
Juan Jimenez, 16, of 246th Place; and Amesh
Sarecha, 17, and Andre Mendivil, 19, both of
whom reside on 57th Drive.
Th e following day, Aug. 10, 111th Precinct
detectives picked up two other suspects allegedly
involved in the break-in: Frank Bordais, 17,
of Little Neck Parkway in Little Neck and Brett
Guglielmetti, 17, of 248th Street in Bellerose.
According to the criminal complaint provided
by the Queens District Attorney’s offi ce,
the fi ve were seen on footage obtained from
security cameras at the school allegedly entering
the building empty-handed on the night
of Aug. 5, then leaving the building later with
each of them carrying large objects.
Deputy Inspector William McBride, commander
of the 111th Precinct, noted in a post
on the precinct’s Twitter page on Th ursday
night that the stolen devices had been recovered.
Bordais, Guglielmetti, Jimenez, Mendivil
and Sarecha were each charged with burglary,
criminal possession of stolen property
and grand larceny, according to court records.
Th ey were released without bail at arraignment
and are scheduled to return to court in
September.
Photo via Wikimedia Commons
Queens demands a safer Grand Central Pkwy.
BY SUZANNE MONTEVERDI
smonteverdi@qns.com / @smont76
Aft er two recent fatal car accidents in
the same month, lawmakers and residents
are asking for the city and state
to take a closer look at a major local
roadway.
At an Aug. 14 press conference,
Councilman Barry Grodenchik,
Assemblyman David Weprin and local
leaders gathered at the Grand Central
Parkway’s 188th Street exit to call
on the New York State Department
of Transportation (NYS DOT)
and New York City Department of
Transportation (NYC DOT) to study
the roadway for ways to improve traffi
c safety.
Th e offi cials recently penned a letter
to the commissioners of both agencies
outlining their concerns and wrote
to the NYPD Chief of Transportation
Th omas M. Chan to request additional
highway enforcement.
While allegedly driving drunk with
several passengers aft er celebrating a
wedding on July 16, a New Jersey man
caused a deadly accident on the major
roadway aft er sideswiping another
vehicle along the westbound lanes of
the Grand Central Parkway near the
188th Street exit. Th e driver, Andrew
Shakespeare, then lost control of his
vehicle and swerved across three lanes
of traffi c, causing a chain reaction
crash.
Th e fatal early morning crash proceeded
to cause traffi c all day long,
Grodenchik said. Th is crash, coupled
with another recent fatal crash on July
27, are signs that the roadway need to
be reexamined, he continued.
“Th is is a roadway that is almost 100
years old,” Grodenchik said. “It’s time
to take a fresh look.”
While he acknowledged he is not a
traffi c or engineering expert, the lawmaker’s
top suggestion was the installation
of a jersey barrier, a concrete or
plastic barrier employed to separate
lanes of traffi c.
Weprin agreed that a jersey barrier
is a priority.
“Certainly, we want to make sure
that its very diffi cult, if not impossible,
for someone who loses control of their
car to go from one side of the highway
to the other side, which of course
resulted in the tragic deaths of those
individuals in the July 16 accident,”
Weprin said.
“I’m here to support the jersey barriers,
rumble strips and any other safety
we can have in terms of traffi c enforcement,
so we can have safety for all of
our constituents,” Community Board
13 District Manager Mark McMillan
said.
Kevin Forrestal, president of
the Queens Civic Congress, and
Michelle Shing, board member for
the Holliswood Civic Association, also
voiced their support for a comprehensive
study.
With regards to police enforcement,
Grodenchik added, the police maintains
a strong presence on the nearby
Clearview Expressway. He would like
to see an equal presence on the Grand
Central Parkway, he said.
QNS reached out to NYS DOT and
NYC DOT for comment and is awaiting
a response.
Couple donates to Bayside hospital
to remember young daughter
BY SUZANNE MONTEVERDI
smonteverdi@qns.com / @smont76
In the wake of immense grief, two
parents have found a way to commemorate
their daughter’s life in a big way
in Bayside.
Anthony and Leah Ziniti donated
$27,000 to the St. Mary’s Hospital for
Children on Aug. 10 in memory of
their 3-month-old daughter, Caterina
Grace. Th e funding will be used to dedicate
a special space in the facility the
“Caterina Grace Room” and support
the healthcare center’s vital programs
and services for children. Th e parents
have also pledged to raise an additional
$23,000, which they will donate
next year.
Born on Nov. 15, 2016, Caterina
Grace Ziniti passed away on Feb. 27
due to respiratory failure caused by
Nemaline Myopathy, a group of congenital
neuromuscular disorders that
cause muscle weakness, hypoventilation,
swallowing dysfunction and
impaired speech ability.
Considered one of the most severe
muscle disorders faced by children and
estimated to occur in one in 50,000 live
births, the parents are working to establish
the Caterina Grace Foundation:
a pending nonprofi t that will work to
raise money and awareness to combat
the condition. Th e recent donation
to the Bayside hospital, where their
A group walks in honor of the Caterina Grace Foundation.
daughter received health services, was
the product of the group’s fi rst charitable
eff orts.
“Our beautiful daughter Caterina
Grace had a very brief stay on this earth
but touched so many hearts. We will
never know why God took our angel
so soon but we are at peace knowing
she is no longer suff ering,” Anthony
and Leah Ziniti said. “We are truly
blessed at the outpouring of support
we have received through the Caterina
Grace Foundation and are humbled to
be able to share this gift with St. Mary’s
Hospital, a place that was so important
in our beautiful daughter’s fi ght for
survival.”
St. Mary’s CEO Dr. Edwin Simpser
said the health organization was “deeply
humbled” by the contribution.
“Anthony and Leah Ziniti displayed
Photo via Facebook/CaterinaGraceFoundation
such strength during their daughter’s
illness and we are so grateful they
have decided to honor Caterina Grace
through a gift to St. Mary’s,” Simpser
said. “We hope the Caterina Grace
Room will be a place of comfort and
healing for many families in the coming
years.”
Find out more about the Caterina
Grace Foundation and their upcoming
events on their website or Facebook
page.
St. Mary’s Hospital for Children,
located at 29-01 216th St., is the only
provider of pediatric long-term and
rehabilitative care in the region. Th e
facility provides services including
intensive rehabilitation, specialized
care and education to children with
special needs and life-limiting conditions.
Photos by Suzanne Monteverdi/QNS
Mark McMillan, District Manager of
Community Board 13, speaks about the dangerous
roadway on Aug. 14.