12 THE QUEENS COURIER • SEPTEMBER 29, 2016 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.qns.com police beat COMPILED BY DOMENICK RAFTER, ANGELA MATUA AND ROBERT POZARYCKI • Masonry NORTH SHORE ANIMAL LEAGUE AMERICA ADOPT A PET “When Only The Best Will Do!” Great Quality, Fair Pricing! animalleague.org • 516.883.7575 • Port Washington, NY Photo by Ellen Dunn North Shore Animal League America Has Over 300 Unique Mixed breed & Purebred, Puppies, Kittens, Dogs and Cats! Open Daily for Adoptions 12 Noon - 8 PM FOLLOW US ON org 25 Davis Ave Changing of the guard in Forest Hills as Chief Pizzuti bids farewell to North Queens precincts There’s a new boss coming into the NYPD command that oversees precincts across northern Queens. Deputy Chief Juanita Holmes, chief of the Domestic Violence Unit, is replacing Deputy Chief Diana Pizzuti as commander of NYPD Patrol Borough Queens North, which shares headquarters with the 112th Precinct in Forest Hills. Pizzuti, who has commanded the eight precincts of Queens North since 2007, received a sendoff during the 112th Precinct Community Council’s meeting on Sept. 21 at the Forest Hills stationhouse as she prepares to take on her new role as chief of personnel at One Police Plaza. Pizzuti is part of a shakeup in the higher brass of the department following the appointment of the NYPD’s new commissioner, James O’Neill. “This is a promotion,” she explained to the Community Council members, “but it is bittersweet. I am going to miss all of you. I am really going to miss all of you.” Her move comes after Pizzuti found herself in the middle of a controversy involving lavish dinners she and former Queens South Commander James Secreto had with disgraced former Queens Library President and CEO Tom Galante, reportedly on the library’s dime. There is no indication that Pizzuti was removed from her post because of the controversy and, as she told the Community Council, the move is a promotion. Secreto is now chief of the Housing Bureau. Pizzuti introduced Holmes at the Sept. 21 Community Council meeting. Holmes, who was raised in Queens and worked on the beat in the Rockaways and in Bayside during her three-decade long career with the NYPD, said she was excited about taking on the role. Pizzuti said she stressed the importance of the Citizens Police Academy Alumni Association’s 112th Precinct chapter, of which she was very involved. “We will certainly keep that important tradition going,” Holmes promised. Pizzuti was also honored with a cake from the Community C ouncil, congratulating her on her promotion. The NYPD Patrol Borough Queens North includes the 104th (based in Ridgewood), 108th (Long Island City), 109th (Flushing), 110th (Elmhurst), 111th (Bayside), 112th (Forest Hills), 114th (Astoria) and 115th (Jackson Heights) precincts. Gang member sentenced to 9 years in prison after trying to kill rival at Corona nightclub A reputed street gang member is spending the next 9 years in prison for attempting to kill a rival gang member at a Corona nightclub last year. Jose Sanchez-Ortiz, 22, of Brooklyn pleaded guilty in August to second-degree attempted murder, according to Queens District Attorney Richard Brown. Sanchez-Ortiz was at Pasiones Bar at 37-65 103rd St. at about 10:43 p.m. on Dec. 14 when he shot 21-year-old Jose Apolinar, who was struck in the left arm. Apolinar would undergo surgery for a severed artery. “This was a senseless shooting in a club occupied by numerous people,” Brown said. “It is fortunate that the individual shot and wounded survived – and that no one else was injured. The defendant will be incarcerated for a lengthy period of time as punishment for his crime, as well as to keep society safe.” Sanchez-Ortiz had been held on $500,000 bail since March. In addition to his prison sentence, he was also ordered to serve fi ve years’ post release supervision. Cops continue to seek suspect behind failed robbery attempt at an Elmhurst bank The NYPD released a security camera image of a suspect who failed in his quest to rob an Elmhurst bank earlier this month. Authorities said the caper occurred at 2:20 p.m. on Sept. 9 inside the Citibank located at 87-11 Queens Blvd., adjacent to Queens Place shopping center. According to police, the perpetrator walked into the branch, approached the counter and handed a teller a demand note. Seconds later, the suspect fl ed the location empty-handed. The incident was reported to the 110th Precinct; no injuries were reported, and no money was missing. Police describe the suspect as a Hispanic male between 30 and 35 years of age with a light complexion, standing 5 foot 9 inches tall and weighing 170 pounds. He was last seen wearing a blue baseball hat, a striped shirt, blue jeans and black sneakers. Anyone with information regarding the perpetrator’s whereabouts is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS, visit their website or send a text message to 274637 (CRIMES), then enter TIP577. All calls and messages are kept confi dential. Naked and drugged man found in Howard Beach park where woman was murdered weeks ago Police made a bizarre discovery Tuesday night in the same Howard Beach park where a jogger was found raped and fatally strangled last month. A naked and disoriented man was found waist deep in the marshy area of Spring Creek Park at about 10 p.m. on Sept. 27. That’s the same park where Karina Vetrano, a 30-year-old resident of 84th Street who went out for a jog and never came home, was found murdered on the night of Aug. 2. Offi cers at a special command post set up following the murder heard cries for help coming from the park on Tuesday night and found the naked man, according to WABC-TV. He was hospitalized, apparently for overdosing on the drug Molly; police also took a DNA sample from him as part of its investigation into Vetrano’s murder. Police found the man shortly after they provided an update about the case to residents at a meeting of the Howard Beach-Lindenwood Civic Association. The NYPD was able to create a DNA profi le of Vetrano’s killer from genetic evidence recovered from the crime scene. However, that profi le did not match others in the state’s DNA databank. The search continues, and rewards of more than $300,000 are available to the person who provides information leading to the arrest and conviction of the killer. Anyone with information regarding the Vetrano case is urged to call Crime Stoppers at 800- 577-TIPS, visit www.nypdcrimestoppers.com or send a text message to 274637 (CRIMES), then enter TIP577. All calls and messages are kept confi dential.
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