4 THE QUEENS COURIER • JULY 26, 2018 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
Local teen’s tragic death in Whitestone prompts rally for driver reform
BY SUZANNE MONTEVERDI
smonteverdi@qns.com / @smont76
Madeline Sershen was doing everything
Photos via Facebook
A memorial created for Madeline Sershen, 17, at the site of the collision in Whitestone
Bayside mail theft incidents continue as cops search for pair of perps
BY SUZANNE MONTEVERDI
smonteverdi@qns.com / @smont76
As authorities continue to battle a rash of
mail theft s in northeast Queens, a pair of
men were recently caught on camera stealing
mail from a Bayside mailbox, according
to police.
Th e 111th Precinct has released photos
of two unidentifi ed suspects pictured lift ing
mail from United States Postal Service (USPS)
mailboxes stationed outside of a local post
offi ce on Springfi eld Boulevard between 64th
Avenue and the Horace Harding Expressway,
in the Oakland Gardens section of the neighborhood.
Th e two men, each wearing dark-colored
hoodies, are seen loading mail into a white
bin and bag.
Authorities are urging residents not to use
public mailboxes in the area and instead place
mail inside of their local post offi ce. Mailboxes
will not be secure “until they are replaced
AND have new locks,” the precinct said on
Twitter on July 9.
Areas of Bayside, Flushing and Little Neck
have seen a spate of mail theft incidents in
recent months. Mail containing checks has
been reported stolen from mailboxes in areas
including 188th Street and 48th Avenue, Bell
Power Women help school
The New York Power Women Awards & Networking Event raised $1,200 to benefi t The Child
School, a state-approved K-12 private school that educates students with learning disabilities.
The money will go to support the school’s art program. Left to right: Melissa O’Brien, Admissions
Director for the Elementary School at The Child School Legacy High School, Megan Weiner,
Schneps Communications, Jennifer Silverio, Secretary to the Board of the LFA Local 1261, and
Ciro A. Quattrocchi, President and Business Manager of the Lay Faculty Association Local 1261.
Boulevard and 35th Avenue, 73rd Avenue and
Springfi eld Boulevard, Marathon Parkway
and Northern Boulevard, and in front of the
Flushing, Bayside and Little Neck Post Offi ces.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Postal
Inspection Service, the law enforcement arm
of the USPS, recently told the Courier that
the group is actively investigating and taking
the threat “very seriously.” All mailboxes
in Bayside have either been retrofi tted or
received enhancements or security upgrades
to protect against theft s, spokesperson Donna
Harris said, and the group “will be putting out
more” in the surrounding area in the near
future.
Perpetrators committing the crime take
stolen checks, frequently lift ed through the
“mail fi shing” method, and use an acetone
wash to remove ink. Th ey then alter payee
and monetary value and cash the check for
themselves.
Authorities are encouraging residents
who mail their checks to frequently check
their account balances to ensure that there
has been no suspicious activity. Checks
should be written with gel impact pens,
which contain an ink that is diffi cult to erase.
During recent crime prevention eff orts,
offi cers from the precinct arrested Frank
Akinnuoye, a 50-year-old Forest Hills resident,
aft er he was allegedly discovered stealing
mail from residential mailboxes on 42nd
Avenue between Bell Boulevard and 214th
Place on June 27.
right when she crossed at Utopia
Parkway and 16th Avenue in Whitestone
on June 25. Th e 17-year-old, who attended
St. Francis Prep in Fresh Meadows
and, previously, Our Lady of the Blessed
Sacrament in Bayside, had the walk sign,
crossed in the crosswalk and her phone
was in her bag, according to her sister,
Olivia Sershen.
Yet Madeline was hit by an 88-yearold
driver, who police say ran the steady
red light at the intersection that morning.
Paramedics rushed Sershen to
NewYork-Presbyterian Queens hospital,
where the teen was pronounced dead.
In the wake of the tragedy, Sershen’s
family and community members have
begun advocating to change the way New
York state assesses its senior drivers. A
total of 33 states and Washington, D.C.,
have special provisions for older drivers,
according to the Governors Highway
Safety Association. New York is not one
of them, and currently has an eight-year
renewal program that requires a vision
exam, regardless of age.
Over 17,000 people have already
signed onto a petition created last month
that calls for “mandatory retesting every
two years for all drivers age 80 and over.”
In a next step, family members have
organized a rally, where they will call
on New York state leaders to enact the
reforms. It will take place on July 30 at
the site of the accident, 16th Avenue and
Utopia Parkway, at 7 p.m.
“We are not looking to take licenses
and independence away from those who
are fi t to drive,” Olivia Sershen wrote in
a public Facebook post. “Instead, we are
trying to weed out those unsafe drivers
by mandating periodic retesting. We are
looking to make our community safer
and attempting to prevent future tragedies.”
Rita Barravecchio, Sershen’s aunt, has
also created a Facebook group called
“Maddie’s Move,” which will serve
as another venue to organize eff orts
for change. She is encouraging those
interested in helping the cause to call
Governor Andrew Cuomo’s offi ce at
518-474-8390 and attend Monday evening’s
rally.
“Support the Sershen Gallagher family
as they rally for change,” the event page
reads. “DMV has to change their driver
renewal policy before another innocent
life is lost because of an incompetent
driver.”
For the latest updates on the July
30 rally, visit the Facebook event page,
which can be found by searching “DMV
RENEWAL REFORM” on the site.
Photo via Twitter/NYPD111Pct
Police are circulating this image of two perpetrators caught stealing from a Bayside mailbox
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