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On Monday, Dec. 18, 62-year-old Dennis Ray (also known as “Midnight), faced his arraignment, a charge of second-degree murder, according to the Nassau County District Attorney.
The new charge comes over a year since Ray, a resident of Roosevelt, was originally indicted for the April 2022 incident on assault and robbery charges.
On April 22, 2022, Ray and his co-defendant, Tyrell Guthrie, robbed then-59-year-old Jose Osma behind the Hempstead Chuck E. Cheese restaurant located at 162 Fulton Avenue.
According to the indictment, Ray and Guthrie beat Osma brutally during the robbery, leaving him unconscious on the ground with numerous skull fractures and with both orbital sockets concaved.
Osma was discovered the next morning by a passerby and taken to the hospital – though, as he did not have any identification on him following the incident, it took days for his family to find and identify him.
During his time at the hospital, Osma slipped in and out of a coma several times, the DA’s Office said. He also had to undergo five separate brain surgeries.
A year after the attack, on April 30, 2023, Osma succumbed to his injuries.
Guthrie had been apprehended near the original scene of the crime, with Ray’s arrest coming nearly a week later.
In July 2022, Ray was indicted on the following charges:
- Assault, six counts of varying degrees;
- Robbery, five counts of varying degrees; and
- Criminal possession of a weapon, two counts of varying degrees.
Ray’s most recent murder charge was consolidated with his previous charges, the DA said.
He pleaded not guilty and is due back in court on January 11, 2024, where he faces a potential maximum of 25 years to life in prison.
Guthrie, for his part, pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter on Thursday, Nov. 9. He is expected to receive 18 years in prison at his sentencing on January 17, 2024.
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