Peter C. Mastrosimone

2 weeks ago | qchron.com | Peter C. Mastrosimone

At least one building was severely damaged and others scarred by fire in Astoria on Easter Sunday, leaving some residents without their homes. Three firefighters and one civilian suffered minor injuries, according to the FDNY. The blaze ripped through 21-33 31 Ave., a freestanding, three-story wooden structure housing a laundromat and apartments, damaged the building next door and at least marked up the exterior of the one next door to that.

2 weeks ago | qchron.com | Peter C. Mastrosimone

Wearing matching memorial T-shirts, family and friends of Justin Diaz, the Brooklyn man whose promising life was cut short at 23 by an allegedly drunk and high off-duty fireman, honored his memory and pressed their case for justice outside Queens Criminal Court last Thursday. Inside, the now ex-firefighter, Michael Pena, 28, of Oakland Gardens, had just been arraigned on a 14-count indictment and remanded to Rikers Island, in a reversal of his first court appearance after the Feb.

3 weeks ago | qchron.com | Peter C. Mastrosimone

Police are still seeking the public’s help in identifying the man who assaulted an older person in Sunnyside a couple weeks ago. The incident occurred in front of 49-05 Roosevelt. Ave. at about 12:40 p.m. April 3, police said. The victim, a 68-year-old man, was walking in front of the location, a small strip mall at the corner of 49th Street, when the attacker approached and punched him in the face, according to the NYPD. The attack was unprovoked, a department spokesperson said.

3 weeks ago | qchron.com | Peter C. Mastrosimone

The ex-firefighter who allegedly killed a young man while drunk and high behind the wheel of a car going three times the speed limit in East Elmhurst on Feb. 26 was indicted April 17 on 14 charges including manslaughter, the office of Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced.

4 weeks ago | qchron.com | Peter C. Mastrosimone

Police fatally shot a man they say advanced on them with a 14-inch knife in Astoria Monday morning. The incident occurred around 6:20 a.m. at the corner of 30th Street and 31st Avenue, according to NYPD Chief of Department John Chell, who led a press conference about it later in the morning. Chell described the man as a 61-year-old person of Asian descent who had had two previous interactions with police during mental-health incidents. His name was not provided.