4 THE COURIER SUN • FEBRUARY 2, 2017 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.qns.com Richmond Hill man found guilty of executing man & torching crime scene 4 years ago BY EMILY DAVENPORT edavenport@qns.com @QNS A Richmond Hill man was found guilty of a number of charges after executing his victim and setting the crime scene on fire nearly four years ago. According to District Attorney Richard A. Brown, Stephen Peters, 26, and an accomplice went to the Richmond Hill home of Azeem Ali, 43, on Feb. 24, 2013. Once they were inside the apartment, Peters beat Ali and tied his hands and feet up with electrical cords. Peters then went to the basement in search of gasoline while his accomplice held a gun to Ali’s head. When Peters returned, he took Ali’s bank card and demanded his PIN before he unloaded three bullets into the victim’s head. Peters then pour gasoline over the victim’s body and around the apartment and set the scene on fire. The FDNY responded to the fire and found the victim’s remains. Following the crime, Peters went to a restaurant on Liberty Avenue and used their ATM to take $100 out of the victim’s account. He later attempted to take out more money from a gas station ATM on Atlantic Avenue but was unsuccessful. Peters was found guilty of three counts of second-degree murder, first-degree robbery, first-degree burglary, first-degree kidnapping, third-degree arson and tampering with physical evidence. His accomplice has been identified as Jason St. Hill, 20, who is awaiting trial. Sentencing will take place on Wednesday, Feb. 22. Peters faces up to 41 1/3 years to life in prison. 107th Precinct welcomes new commander BY SUZANNE MONTEVERDI smonteverdi@qns.com @smont76 The Fresh Meadows-based 107th Precinct has a new commanding officer Photo by Suzanne Monteverdi/QNS Angry flier harasses Muslim airline worker at JFK lounge BY ROBERT POZARYCKI rpozarycki@qns.com @robbpoz Using profanity and invoking the new president’s name, a Massachusetts man allegedly assaulted and harassed a Muslim woman who works inside a lounge at John F. Kennedy International Airport last week, prosecutors announced. Robin A. Rhodes, 57, of Worcester, MA, faces charges of assault, unlawful imprisonment, menacing and harassment as hate crimes for attacking the Delta Airlines employee as she worked in the Delta Sky Lounge in Terminal 2 between 7:10 p.m. and 9:45 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 25. It was the latest in a number of hate crimes and other incidents that have occurred in Queens and elsewhere in the United States since the election of President Donald Trump last November. Last Wednesday, President Trump signed an executive order suspending immigration from certain Middle Eastern nations and ordering the wall’s construction, measures which he claims will bolster national security. “The bigotry and hatred that the defendant is accused of manifesting and acting upon have no place in a civilized society – especially in Queens County, the most culturally diverse county in the nation,” Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown said in a statement on Thursday, Jan. 26. “Crimes of hate will never be tolerated here and when they do regrettably occur, those responsible will be brought to justice.” Law enforcement sources said Rhodes had departed a flight from Aruba and was on a layover awaiting a connecting flight to Massachusetts when he spotted the employee, Rabeeya Khan, who wore a hijab while sitting in her office in the Delta Sky Lounge. Prosecutors said Rhodes allegedly approached the office door and said, “Are you expletive sleeping? Are you praying? What are you doing?” He then punched the door, which then struck the back of the chair on which Khan was sitting. When Khan asked Rhodes what he was doing, prosecutors said, he then threatened to assault her, then kicked her in the right leg. Khan then moved toward another corner of the office, but Rhodes allegedly kicked the door, stepped inside the office and blocked her path. Prosecutors said another individual who witnessed the incident approached Rhodes and tried to calm him down. He moved away from the door, and Khan managed to run out of the office to the front desk of the lounge. Rhodes, however, allegedly wasn’t finished with his attack. Authorities said he then followed Rhodes to the front desk, then went to his knees and mocked a Muslim praying. He then shouted, “Expletive Islam, expletive ISIS, Trump is here now. He will get rid of all of you. You can ask Germany, Belgium and France about these kind of people. You will see what happens.” Members of the Port Authority Police Department responded to the incident and took Rhodes into custody. He faces up to four years in prison if convicted of the charges against him. after its previous leader was transferred to a new post within the NYPD. Deputy Inspector Scott Henry assumed the role of commanding officer as of Dec. 6, 2016, replacing Deputy Inspector Paul Valerga, who was transferred to the NYPD’s Internal Affairs Bureau based in Manhattan. “We got very busy here in the 107th Precinct; all good, too,” said Carol Ann Foley, president of the 107th Precinct Community Council, at the Jan. 24 meeting. “On Dec. 6, I was called by Deputy Inspector Valerga and told that he was transferring, and a couple of hours later I got a call from our new commanding officer.” Henry was present for Tuesday night’s meeting and took time to introduce himself to residents. The deputy inspector told attendees he grew up Sunset Park, Brooklyn. Before coming to the 107th Precinct, he worked in Internal Affairs for nine months, and prior to that, spent seven years in investigations as a borough commander for the NYPD Detective Bureau. He spent most of his career on patrol, but worked the last few years doing investigation work. This is his first stint as a precinct commander. “My theory on management is that it’s always a team,” Henry said. “I stress that when I talk to the cops that work for me. There’s no individual success; it’s always success as being part of a team.” The deputy inspector encouraged residents to feel comfortable calling the precinct with any concerns, and to always remember to say something when witnessing something that doesn’t seem right. Henry thanked Foley and the precinct’s community council for their help creating a smooth transition and then took questions from attendees. “Being a new commanding officer, there’s a lot of things you have to learn,” Henry said. “Here, in the 107th … every race, every religion, everybody is friendly to the police in this community. And that doesn’t happen by mistake; it’s not just a one-way road.”
SC02022017
To see the actual publication please follow the link above