FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.queenscourier.com october 17, 2013 • THE QUEENS COURIER 3 MOTHER OF MISSING AUTISTIC BOY: SON’S SCHOOL ‘FAILED ME’ BY ANGY ALTAMIRANO AND CRISTABELLE TUMOLA [email protected] The search continues for Avonte Oquendo, who family members say is a shy yet happy, lovable, care-free and loving boy. Avonte, 14, who is autistic, was last seen leaving the Center Boulevard School at 1-50 51st Avenue in Long Island City around 12:38 p.m. on Friday, October 4. There have been mixed reports on how the Rego Park teen, who cannot verbally communicate and is supposed to be supervised at all times, managed to leave the school, said the family’s attorney, David Perecman. Some say the boy ran away while there was an altercation between other students in the lunchroom, while others say the teacher and aide lost sight of him while moving from the lunchroom to the classroom. According to Avonte’s grandmother, the security guard appointed to the front of the school said she had seen Avonte running towards the door, asked him where he was going and after he did not respond, she just allowed him to leave because she did not know he was a special needs student. THE COURIER/ Photo by Angy Altamirano Avonte Oquendo’s family continues their search for the autistic teen who was last seen running out of the Center Boulevard School in Long Island City on Friday, October 4. Hate Crimes unit investigating Bellerose graffiti BY MELISSA CHAN [email protected] Bellerose residents whose cars were vandalized with graffiti last week were able to wash off the spray paint — but not the hateful message it left behind. Fourteen cars in the quiet residential area were marked up during an early morning graffiti spree on Friday, October 11, police said. Silver-painted swastikas were found on half of the vehicles around 87th Avenue and 256th Street, according to police. Residents said other cars were tagged with lines and random scribbles. “I was very surprised,” said Devinder Chahal, whose white BMW was vandalized. “We saw all the other cars were painted. It’s a little scary.” Chahal said she woke up at 5:30 a.m. to find four of her family’s cars, including her husband’s yellow city cab, sprawled along the sides and on the hoods with graffiti. They were mostly squiggles, she said, but many down the street were hit with the Nazi symbol and others known to represent white supremacy. “Right now, the way it looks, it could be a hate crime,” Chahal said. “We’re concerned about the future. Today, they painted the cars. Tomorrow, it could be anything.” Helicopters circled above the neighborhood Friday as law enforcement officials went up and down the roped off streets gathering evidence off cars. “This has never happened before,” said Parveen Kumar, another victim of the vandalism. “I don’t know what happened.” Chahal said the stubborn paint came off after “a lot of work,” following a full day’s investigation. It was unclear if more than one person was suspected of the crimes. An investigation by the NYPD’s Hate Crimes Task Force is ongoing, a police spokesperson said. State lawmakers and area residents rallied this week against the vandalism. “This is a despicable act of vandalism,” said State Senator Tony Avella, “and those responsible for this heinous crime should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, including being possibly charged with a hate crime.” Resident Daljit Kaur said she feared the culprit — or multiple offenders — could be capable of worse. “Who knows what else they’ll do? It’s dangerous,” she said. THE COURIER/Photos by Melissa Chan This symbol, similar to one representing white supremacy, was sprayed on a car during a Bellerose graffiti spree. Yet, according to Perecman, no student at the school is allowed to leave the property until dismissal. Perecman said it took the school close to an hour to inform the boy’s mother that he had been missing. “They failed me, they really did. They’re supposed to be a second parent, when you put your kid in school for the day and until they get home. They failed me as a school,” said Vanessa Fontaine, Avonte’s mother. “Now the school system is not trusted. They shouldn’t have waited an hour to notify me that my son was not there.” The Department of Education decline to comment, saying it is a police matter. Avonte’s family held a vigil on Friday, October 11 in front of the school, next to two tents that have worked as “ground zero” for the family to gather volunteers, hand out flyers and serve as an information center. Daniel Oquendo Sr., the boy’s father who has been at the site with his older son, Daniel, said people have come from all over the city and outside of New York to lend a helping hand. “It kind of gives you hope for mankind,” he said. “We appreciate everything everyone is doing, we see the love and we appreciate it.” The NYPD has officers searching the streets daily for the boy, who family says loves trains, and looking for him by helicopter and with divers. The family has filed a notice of claim to sue the City of New York for $25 million, taking claims of negligence against both the Department of Education and the Special Security Division which provide the security agents for the school. “Time is of the essence and they did not make use of the time appropriately,” said Perecman. “There are lots of questions and no answers and no Avonte.” An initial $5,000 reward for Avonte’s return was offered by Mayerson & Associates, a New York Law Firm which represents individuals with autism. Manhattan Children’s Center, a nonprofit private autism school, announced it was matching the law firm’s offer with an additional $5,000 from the Gelb Family Foundation. Since then, the reward has increased to $70,000 through the support of Health First, the employer of the missing teen’s mother, Suzanne and Bob Wright, co-founders of Autism Speaks, David Perecman of the Perecman Firm, and an anonymous donor, according to Autism Speaks. Oquendo was last wearing a gray striped shirt, black jeans and black sneakers. He is 5’3” tall and weighs 125 pounds. Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS (8477). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website or can text their tips to CRIMES (274637), then enter TIP577. All calls are strictly confidential. PBA sues over stop-and-frisk BY LIAM LA GUERRE [email protected] The Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association (PBA) slapped the city with a lawsuit on Tuesday, October 15 to challenge the profiling measure of the Community Safety Act. The organization charges that the City Council overstepped its boundaries by passing Local Law 71, which allows individuals to more easily sue the city over discrimination, such as with some stop-and-frisk encounters. Racial profiling protection is preempted by New York State Criminal Procedure Law, the lawsuit said, and cannot be changed by local governing bodies. “The language of so-called ‘biased policing law’ is unconstitutionally vague and will only serve to confuse police officers regarding its racial profiling provisions while hampering their ability to enforce the existing state laws that keep our city safe,” PBA president Patrick Lynch said. The City Council passed the Community Safety Act on August 22, following a successful override vote of Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s veto. The legislation includes two laws aimed at shifting management and policies in the NYPD. One of the laws will create an inspector general position to oversee the activities of the police department, while Local Law 71 will expand biased-based protection from ethnicity, religion and national origin to age, gender, sexual orientation and other categories. The mayor’s office is also suing the city over the profiling legislation for attempting to alter State Criminal Procedure Law.
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