Man Sets Westchester Apartment On Fire With Resident Still Inside: Here's His Sentence Man Sets Westchester Apartment On Fire With Resident Still Inside: Here's His Sentence
Man Sets Westchester Apartment On Fire With Resident Still Inside: Here's His Sentence A 51-year-old man will spend more than a decade in prison for lighting a Westchester apartment on fire while its resident was sleeping inside, officials announced.  Yonkers resident Angel Rivera was sentenced to 12 years in state prison for setting a Yonkers apartment on fire with a resident inside in June 2021, the Westchester County District Attorney's Office announced on Thursday, May 23.  According to the DA's Office, on June 7, 2021, around 2 a.m., Rivera walked up to a Yonkers residential building on Elm Street, lit an object on fire, and threw it through the open …
Man Sets Fire To Hudson Valley Home Of Trooper's Father After Getting Traffic Tickets: DA Man Sets Fire To Hudson Valley Home Of Trooper's Father After Getting Traffic Tickets: DA
Man Sets Fire To Hudson Valley Home Of Trooper's Father After Getting Traffic Tickets: DA A 26-year-old has been accused of setting fire to the Hudson Valley home of a state trooper’s father after being issued traffic tickets. According to Orange County District Attorney David M. Hoovler, the man, Tyler Williams, was pulled over and issued traffic tickets by a trooper while driving in Middletown on the evening of Dec. 20, 2023.  Early the next morning, a fire was started at the home of the trooper’s father in Warwick.  After a five-month investigation and the execution of over 20 judicially-authorized search warrants, largely focused on digital forensics, as well as n…
Woman Nabbed After Pouring Gas On Cafe, Lighting It On Fire In Westchester: Police Woman Nabbed After Pouring Gas On Cafe, Lighting It On Fire In Westchester: Police
Woman Nabbed After Pouring Gas On Cafe, Lighting It On Fire In Westchester: Police A 32-year-old woman faces arson charges after pouring gasoline on the walls of a cafe in Westchester and lighting a fire following a dispute with the business's staff, police announced. The incident leading to the woman's arrest happened on Tuesday, Dec. 12 just after 12:45 a.m., when staff at the Drake Cafe & Bar at 1 Drake Ave. in New Rochelle reported an arson incident to New Rochelle Police, the department said. According to authorities, the bar owner said an argument between staff and the suspect, 32-year-old Bronx resident Freissy Batista-Pereya, had happened earlier in the n…
Man Kills Romantic Rival From Westchester, Burns His Body: Sentenced To Decades In Prison Man Kills Romantic Rival From Westchester, Burns His Body: Sentenced To Decades In Prison
Man Kills Romantic Rival From Westchester, Burns His Body: Sentenced To Decades In Prison A man will spend decades in prison after fatally shooting a victim from Westchester and attempting to hide the evidence by burning their body in an apartment building basement, officials said. Brooklyn resident Derek Whitaker, age 58, was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison for the March 2020 murder of Mount Vernon resident Jonathan Blake, the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office announced on Wednesday, Aug. 16.  According to the DA's Office, during the early morning hours on the day of the murder, March 13, 2020, Whitaker ambushed Blake on North Broadway (Route 9) in…
New Update: Car Arson Suspect Caught With Armor Piercing Bullets In Westchester, Police Say New Update: Car Arson Suspect Caught With Armor Piercing Bullets In Westchester, Police Say
New Update: Car Arson Suspect Caught With Armor Piercing Bullets In Westchester, Police Say A lengthy investigation has resulted in the arrest of a 30-year-old man who allegedly set numerous vehicles on fire in Westchester, police said.  On Thursday night, July 13, 30-year-old Fredy Hernandez-Paz was arrested on arson charges by Port Chester Police in connection with several incidents that happened in June and July, according to the department.  According to police, Hernandez-Paz was involved in early morning vehicle arson incidents that happened on both Sunday morning, June 11 around 4 a.m. in the area of Spring Street, and Saturday, July 8 arou…
Teen Fatally Shot: Suspect Tried To Escape On Plane To Jamaica, Westchester DA Says Teen Fatally Shot: Suspect Tried To Escape On Plane To Jamaica, Westchester DA Says
Teen Fatally Shot: Suspect Tried To Escape On Plane To Jamaica, Westchester DA Says A man who allegedly fatally shot an 18-year-old in Westchester tried to escape justice by lighting his car on fire and attempting to board a plane to Jamaica, officials said.  Mount Vernon resident Akeem Grant, age 33, was arraigned in Westchester County Court on Thursday, May 18 on an indictment charging him with the murder of 18-year-old Tamani Turner in Mount Vernon, according to Westchester County District Attorney Miriam Rocah.  Earlier Report - Murder Of Teen In Mount Vernon: 33-Year-Old Suspect Apprehended According to the District Attorney's Office, on Thursday,…
Hudson Valley Restaurateur Sentenced For Burning Down Eatery, Endangering Others Hudson Valley Restaurateur Sentenced For Burning Down Eatery, Endangering Others
Hudson Valley Restaurateur Sentenced For Burning Down Eatery, Endangering Others A former Hudson Valley restaurateur has been sentenced to prison for intentionally burning down his restaurant and endangering the lives of his wife and first responders. Orange County resident Zef Gjurashaj, age 60, of Newburgh, was sentenced Wednesday, March 1. Gjurashaj, who was convicted by a jury in September 2022, was sentenced to 22 years to life in prison for burning down Andiamo’s Restaurant, which was located at 5025 Route 9W, in the Town of Newburgh in 2017, the Orange County DA's Office said. Prior to the trial, Gjurashaj’s co-defendant and the wife of his nephew…
Man Charged With Lighting Brush Fires Intentionally In Hudson Valley: Police Man Charged With Lighting Brush Fires Intentionally In Hudson Valley: Police
Man Charged With Lighting Brush Fires Intentionally In Hudson Valley: Police A man from Fairfield County has been charged with intentionally starting brush fires in the Hudson Valley, police said.  On Sunday, Nov. 27, police in Putnam County responded to a brush fire in Southeast on Old Milltown Road and were told by firefighters that they had responded to an unusually high number of fires in the same area over the past year, according to Putnam County Sheriff Kevin McConville.  Police then began investigating to find out if the fires were set on purpose, and with the help of an arson detection K9 from the Dutchess County Sheriff's Office, authorities real…
Peekskill Man Charged With Killing Stepfather, Lighting Relative's Home On Fire: DA Peekskill Man Charged With Killing Stepfather, Lighting Relative's Home On Fire: DA
Peekskill Man Charged With Killing Stepfather, Lighting Relative's Home On Fire: DA A man from Northern Westchester is charged with fatally stabbing his stepfather before lighting a relative's home on fire.  On Wednesday, Sept. 14, around 12:30 a.m., 30-year-old Shane Gilleo of Peekskill is accused of stabbing 48-year-old Edward Reeves numerous times with a knife at a residence in Peekskill on North James Street, according to a release by Westchester County District Attorney Miriam Rocah on Thursday, Nov. 10. Reeves was taken to Westchester Medical Center in Valhalla, where he later died, Rocah said.  Later that day, around 11:20 a.m., Gilleo is charge…
Police Pursue 'Persons Of Interest' After Fire Set At School In Area Police Pursue 'Persons Of Interest' After Fire Set At School In Area
Police Pursue 'Persons Of Interest' After Fire Set At School In Area Police in the Hudson Valley are asking the public for. help to identify three men who were seen leaving the area of a school moments before a fire was set. The incident took place in Putnam County on Monday, Oct. 10, at the Garden Street School in the village of Brewster. According to the Brewster Police, at this time the three men are just "persons of interest," not suspects. In addition, there were two other teenage boys that were seen by witnesses leaving the school as smoke was coming out of the second-floor windows, police said. The two were seen coming out of the east side of the bu…
Owner Convicted Of Setting Fire That Destroyed Restaurant In Case Involving Westchester Woman Owner Convicted Of Setting Fire That Destroyed Restaurant In Case Involving Westchester Woman
Owner Convicted Of Setting Fire That Destroyed Restaurant In Case Involving Westchester Woman A Hudson Valley restaurant owner faces years in prison after being found guilty by a jury of setting fire to his restaurant. Zef Gjurashaj, age 60, was found guilty on Monday, Sept. 26 by a jury on all counts including arson, reckless endangerment, and insurance fraud, among others, for setting fire to Andiamo’s Restaurant in the town of Newburgh, said Orange County District Attorney David Hoovler Prior to the trial, Gjurashaj’s co-defendant, Marina Gjurashaj, age 38, of Yonkers, who is the wife of his nephew, pled guilty for her role in setting the fire. As part of her plea agree…
Peekskill Murder Suspect Who Set Fire To Avoid Capture ID'd, Charged, Police Say Peekskill Murder Suspect Who Set Fire To Avoid Capture ID'd, Charged, Police Say
Peekskill Murder Suspect Who Set Fire To Avoid Capture ID'd, Charged, Police Say Police have identified a Northern Westchester man who has been apprehended after allegedly setting fire to a home in order to avoid being captured following the stabbing death of another man. Peekskill resident Shane Gilleo, age 30, was arrested on Wednesday, Sept. 14, and charged with murder and arson, said Det. Lt. Jack Galusha, of the Peekskill Police. The incident unfolded around 12:30 p.m., Wednesday when police responded to a call of a person stabbed in front of 7 N. James St., in Peekskill. Upon arrival, officers discovered 48-year-old Edward Reeves had suffered multiple stab wounds…