Attorney General James Stops Brooklyn Real Estate Firm from Illegally Blacklisting Tenants

Brooklyn High Rise Used Applicants’ Housing Court Records Against Them; Denied Housing to More Than 200 Applicants

New York Attorney General Letitia James announced a settlement with Brooklyn real estate firm Brooklyn High Rise LLC (Brooklyn High Rise) for illegally denying housing to prospective tenants based on housing court records with prior landlords. Brooklyn High Rise also illegally charged applicants deposit fees to hold an apartment during the application process – a practice known as “good faith” deposits – and often failed to return these fees when applicants withdrew or were denied housing. This settlement continues Attorney General James’ efforts to protect New York tenants by cracking down on a practice known as “tenant blacklisting,” where landlords use housing court records as a basis to deny a potential tenant’s rental application. Tenant blacklisting was made illegal in 2019 following changes to the Real Property Law, which outlawed efforts to deny housing to renters because of prior landlord-tenant court cases. As a result of the settlement, Brooklyn High Rise will end its unlawful tenant screening policies and pay $352,250 in penalties and restitution.

“All New Yorkers deserve to be treated fairly when applying for housing opportunities,” said Attorney General James. “At a time when it is difficult to find safe and affordable housing in New York and across the country, it is unacceptable that Brooklyn High Rise used housing court records as a basis to deny housing to hard-working New Yorkers. My office will continue to stand up for all tenants and ensure that everyone has access to safe housing, regardless of their history.”

In 2019, the enactment of the New York Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act (HSTPA) made it illegal for a property owner or landlord to deny a rental application based on the applicant’s past housing court records. If there is documented evidence that a property owner or landlord obtained an applicant’s housing court records and subsequently denied the application, the law presumes the landlord or property owner made the decision to deny illegally based on the applicant’s court records. The burden is on the landlord or property owner to prove the applicant was denied for other reasons. Since the law was enacted, the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) has been reviewing records from third-party tenant screening bureaus to assess which landlords and brokers continue to obtain housing court records when reviewing applications.

In May 2025, OAG opened an investigation into Brooklyn High Rise after learning that the broker continued to request tenant screening reports from a third-party vendor that included landlord and tenant court histories. The OAG’s investigation revealed that between July 15, 2019 and September 5, 2025, Brooklyn High Rise obtained housing court records of some prospective tenants during the screening process. During this period, 203 tenants were illegally denied housing based on submitted court history.

The OAG’s investigation also found that Brooklyn High Rise illegally charged applicants between $500 and $750 as a “good faith deposit” to hold an apartment while their applications were being processed. Brooklyn High Rise told applicants this fee would be applied to their first month’s rent if they were approved or returned if they were denied. However, according to the terms and conditions on its website, there were circumstances in which a deposit may not be given back, including failure to submit a completed application and required paperwork by the given deadline. Between January 2020 and December 2025, an estimated 300 applicants who either withdrew their applications or were denied housing never received their “good faith deposit” back.

Brooklyn High Rise has committed to ending its unlawful tenant screening policies, including ending its practice of seeking past landlord and tenant court records. If an applicant submits court history paperwork during screening, Brooklyn High Rise must instruct the applicant to resubmit without that information, and a new leasing agent without prior knowledge of the paperwork will be assigned to review the application. Brooklyn High Rise is also required to publicly affirm compliance with New York’s tenant blacklisting and anti-discrimination protection laws on its leasing platforms and portals, and will remove any questions related to court history and criminal background from its rental applications. Brooklyn High Rise will also train its leasing agents and staff on tenant blacklisting and fair housing regulations. If Brooklyn High Rise violates the agreement or engages in tenant blacklisting, OAG reserves the right to pursue further enforcement action, up to and including litigation.

Brooklyn High Rise is also required to pay $202,250 in penalties for violation of the blacklisting law, and $150,000 in restitution to applicants who paid the “good faith deposit” and either withdrew their applications or were denied housing but never received their deposit back. All tenants who applied for housing through the Brooklyn High Rise website and whose application was either denied or withdrawn between January 2020 and December 2025 will be contacted by Brooklyn High Rise and can file claims for a payment of $500 or, in some cases, $750.

To ensure compliance with state law, OAG recommends that landlords, property owners, and/or their real estate brokers and leasing agents refrain from requesting a potential tenant’s landlord and tenant court records and rental histories altogether and cease relationships with tenant screening bureaus that continue to provide these court records. Any New Yorker who believes that they have been denied an apartment based on a housing court history with a previous landlord should submit a tenant blacklisting complaint online with OAG. 

Ten Arrested in Bogalusa, Louisiana Drug Network Investigation Stemming from Three Overdose Deaths

 

Ten individuals were arrested and booked into the Washington Parish Jail on following simultaneous arrest and search warrants executed at multiple locations in Bogalusa, Louisiana.

The operation stems from an investigation into three overdose deaths in Washington Parish, which investigators treated as homicides rather than closing the files. Deputies developed intelligence identifying a drug distribution network operating in and around Bogalusa.

Of the ten individuals taken into custody:

• Six individuals are tied directly or indirectly to the overdose death investigation. Two are directly related and charged with second-degree murder, while four are indirectly related.
• Four individuals were arrested for separate drug possession charges after being encountered on site during the execution of the search warrants. These four arrests are unrelated to the core overdose investigation.

"Over this summer, three families in this parish have buried someone," Washington Parish Sheriff Jason Smith said. "Today, two people are charged with murder. A fatal overdose is no longer a closed file in this parish. It is a homicide investigation, and it will be worked like one."

During the search warrant executions, authorities seized dozens of electronic devices, firearms, financial records, and more than one kilogram of suspected fentanyl.

Those charged in connection with the investigation include:

• Savannah Stephens, 33, Second-Degree Murder, Distribution of a Controlled Dangerous Substance, Conspiracy
• John Stewart, 38, Second-Degree Murder (as a principal), Distribution of a Controlled Dangerous Substance, Conspiracy
• Whitney Sykes, 39, Money Laundering, Distribution of a Controlled Dangerous Substance, Conspiracy
• Randy King Jr. (aka "Weezy"), 33, Distribution of a Controlled Dangerous Substance, Conspiracy, Money Laundering
• Joshua King (aka "MoneyMakinJosh" or "MMJ"),33, Distribution of a Controlled Dangerous Substance, Conspiracy, Money Laundering
• Brandon Lotts, 40, Conspiracy to Distribute Schedule I, II, and IV Controlled Dangerous Substances, Conspiracy, Transactions Involving Proceeds from Drug Offenses

Those unrelated to the overdose investigation, but also arrested on-site include:

• Albert Stewart (aka "JoJo"), 33, Possession of Heroin
• Rodney Stewart, 39, Possession of Heroin
• Jeffrey Maddox, 30, Fugitive (another jurisdiction) 
• Brian McCrory, 44, Possession of Schedule II Drugs

Sheriff Smith emphasized that the investigation remains open and active.

"These charges reflect what we can prove, but the investigation is ongoing," Smith said. "We will continue to look for anyone who did business with these individuals. People who come to us first will have options that the people we come to later will not."

The operation involved broad multi-agency coordination. Participating agencies include the Fentanyl Overdose Response Team of the Drug Enforcement Administration New Orleans Field Division; District Attorney Collin Sims of the 22nd Judicial District; the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Slidell Police Department; the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries; the Bogalusa Police Department; Customs and Border Protection (New Orleans Air and Marine Branch); Louisiana Probation and Parole; the Louisiana Army Reserve and National Guard; the Harrison County Sheriff's Office; the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office; the U.S. Secret Service; and the Louisiana State Police.

"Bogalusa is worth the effort," Smith added. "The people who live there are entitled to the same expectation of safety as anyone else in this parish, and I intend to keep working until they have it."

All charges are accusations. Every person named is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

Governor Hochul Announces $1 Million Grant to the City of Glen Cove for Improvements to the Pascucci Soccer Field

State Investment Will Upgrade Glen Cove’s Only Public Soccer Field Creating a Lasting Community Asset for Families

Builds on the Success of New York’s Historic World Cup Matches and Celebrations Across the State

Governor Kathy Hochul announced $1 million in state funding for the City of Glen Cove to improve Pascucci Soccer Field, the City's only public soccer field. The investment will help ensure that Glen Cove families, young athletes and community organizations have access to a safe, welcoming and high quality facility for years to come. The funding builds on Governor Hochul’s commitment to turn the excitement and statewide success of New York’s co-hosting of the 2026 FIFA World Cup into a lasting legacy for communities across the state. From free family-friendly World Cup celebrations on Long Island, including the State's public watch experience at Stony Brook University to investments in fields, equipment and youth programming through the governor's $6 million NYKicks program, the state is ensuring that more New Yorkers can participate in the world's game.

“Soccer brings people together across generations and neighborhoods, and every young person deserves a safe place to play,” Governor Hochul said. “Pascucci Soccer Field has long been a gathering place for Glen Cove residents, and my $1 million in support will help preserve and improve the city's only public soccer field for the families who rely on it. After a historic World Cup that brought the world to New York and inspired fans across our state, we are making sure that its legacy lives on in communities like Glen Cove.”

Pascucci Soccer Field has served Glen Cove residents for generations, and it is an important recreational resource for the city's families, young people and soccer enthusiasts. The field is particularly meaningful to Glen Cove's diverse community, including its long-standing Italian-American community and its growing, vibrant, Hispanic community, where soccer is a shared passion and a powerful connection across cultures.

The state funding will support improvements that help ensure Pascucci Soccer Field remains a dependable public space for organized leagues, informal play, youth activities and community gatherings. The Governor’s investment recognizes the field's importance as Glen Cove’s only public soccer facility and advances the Governor's broader commitment to expanding access to safe outdoor recreation through her Unplug and Play initiative.

Governor Kathy Hochul recently announced the launch of NY Kicks: A World Cup Legacy Investment Fund through the 2026 Regional Economic Development Council (REDC) Initiative, aimed at building soccer fields in disadvantaged communities across each region of the state to strengthen neighborhoods and bring people together through a shared love of the game. First proposed in the Governor's 2026 State of the State and included in the FY27 Enacted Budget, the $5 million NY Kicks program will provide capital grants to support the creation, expansion and enhancement of community soccer fields for youth and players of all ages, capitalizing on the momentum of the World Cup 2026. The FY27 Budget also includes $1 million in additional funding that will be administered by the State Office of Children and Family Services for a companion grant program for NY Kicks recipients to fund programming, equipment, training, and other operating costs that maximize use of these new facilities including uniforms, shin guards, soccer balls and coaches. 

DOJ Secures Agreements with NYU and UPMC to End Pediatric “Gender-Affirming Care”

 

Another result of the Department's nationwide investigation into hospitals performing sex-rejecting procedures on minors

The Department of Justice announced agreements with two of the nation’s largest health care systems—New York University Langone Hospitals (“NYU”) and University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (“UPMC”)—that resolve investigations into potential violations of federal law arising from their provision of sex-rejecting procedures on children, often euphemistically referred to as “gender-affirming care.” Under the agreements, NYU and UPMC will cease providing these dangerous interventions to minors, which include administering puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones and performing surgical procedures. Each hospital will also pay a monetary amount as part of the resolutions, with NYU agreeing to pay $8.5 million and UPMC $950,000.

“The Department of Justice is fighting to protect our nation’s children and working tirelessly to reach agreements with hospitals to end so-called ‘gender affirming care’ for minors,” said Attorney General Todd Blanche. “This resolutions send a clear message: hospitals that target children in these practices and then fraudulently obtain payment for the procedures will be held to account.”

This announcement follows similar agreements with Mount Sinai Health System in New York, Texas Children’s Hospital, the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, and Connecticut Children’s Hospital. In working towards these resolutions, the United States acknowledged that both NYU and UPMC took significant steps entitling them to credit for cooperation with the Department in its investigation, including ongoing cooperation in the Department’s investigation of other entities potentially violating federal law in connection with the provision of sex-rejecting procedures to minors. At all times during the investigation, NYU and UPMC remained cooperative and solutions-driven.

“We appreciate that some of the nation’s largest and most prestigious hospital systems have agreed to cease harming minors under the guise of ‘gender-affirming care’ and agreed to pay for potential violations of federal law when they did so,” said Brett Shumate, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division. “But I want to be clear: our efforts and investigations into other providers are ongoing.  Those that have broken the law and not resolved their potential liability will be prosecuted to the fullest extent possible.”

“My office’s foremost priority is protecting children. The resolutions announced today reflect the close collaboration across the Department of Justice and our continued commitment to ensuring that minors are safeguarded,” said Ryan Raybould, US Attorney for the Northern District of Texas. “These investigations are ongoing, and my office will continue to follow the evidence, act decisively when the well-being of minors is at stake, and fully pursue wrongdoers who have broken federal law.”

The resolutions obtained in this matter were the result of a coordinated effort between the Civil Division’s Enforcement and Affirmative Litigation Branch and the Commercial Litigation Branch, Fraud Section, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, and the Food and Drug Administration Office of Criminal Investigations.

In 2025, President Trump directed the Department of Justice to prioritize investigations and enforcement actions involving violations of federal law in the provision of so-called “gender-affirming care” to children. Acting on that directive, the Civil Division launched a nationwide investigation into the child gender-transition industry. The investigation examines potential violations of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, the False Claims Act, and other federal health care laws, including fraudulent billing practices such as the use of false diagnosis codes to obtain payment from federal health care programs and private insurers. These schemes compound the harm inflicted on vulnerable children by fraudulently shifting the cost of potentially unlawful medical interventions to taxpayers and insurers. Today’s agreements are the results of that nationwide investigation. The Civil Division’s Enforcement & Affirmative Litigation Branch and Commercial Litigation Branch will continue to pursue these cases across the country, stop unlawful conduct, recover funds obtained through fraud, and hold accountable those who profit by violating federal law at children’s expense.

The claims resolved by the United States in these agreements are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability. NYU and UPMC have expressly denied all allegations.

ICE Lodges Detainer for Illegal Alien Who Killed Two People While Driving a Semi-Truck

This illegal alien was RELEASED into the country by the Biden Administration and was granted a commercial driver’s license by Gavin Newsom’s California 

The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released the following statement after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) lodged a detainer for an illegal alien who killed two people while driving a semi-truck in California.

According to local reporting, the Moab Police Department (MPD) in Utah stopped Chamkaur Singh, an illegal alien from India, on September 1, after he had been driving 20 miles over the speed limit in a semi-truck. During the stop, the MPD officer identified Singh as the subject of a nationwide fugitive warrant for homicide – vehicular manslaughter after a crash in April that killed two people in California.

The crash took place on March 29 in Ontario. While California Highway Patrol (CHP) officers were responding to a two-vehicle crash, a semi-truck traveling in the slow lane rear-ended one car, killing one passenger and critically injuring another, before hitting another vehicle and killing a second person. Seven vehicles were involved in total and two other people were injured.

Chamkaur Singh

Singh was arrested and booked into the Grand County Jail. ICE lodged a detainer the day after he was arrested.

Singh was issued a commercial driver’s license (CDL) by the state of California on May 10, 2025, despite being an illegal alien. His CDL remains active despite three convictions on his CDL driving record, including improper lane or location, following too closely, and speeding.

“This illegal alien from India is accused of causing a semi-truck crash that killed two people in California,” said DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin. “Due to the Biden Administration’s open borders and Gavin Newsom’s sanctuary policies, this criminal was released into our country and granted a commercial driver’s license. Despite having three convictions on his driving record, his CDL is still active. DHS is calling on Gavin Newsom and other sanctuary politicians to eliminate these deadly sanctuary policies that give handouts to illegal aliens at the cost of American lives. Illegal aliens have no right to be in our country or on our roadways.”

Singh claims to have left India in December 2020 and traveled through the United Arab Emirates, Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Panama, Honduras, Guatemala, and Mexico, before illegally entering the United States through Arizona in August 2021. Although he was arrested by the U.S. Border Patrol, he was ultimately RELEASED into the country by the Biden Administration.

Under Governor Newsom, California has become a hotbed of illegal alien crime. Some of the recent illegal alien crimes in the sanctuary state include:

• In July, ICE lodged a detainer for Gokhan Bagci, an illegal alien from Turkey, after his arrest for sexually assaulting a 6-year-old girl at a daycare in Sacramento, California.
• In May, ICE lodged a detainer for Joaquin Escoto Vazquez, an illegal alien from Mexico, after his arrest for fatally stabbing two women and a baby in Modesto, California.
• In May, ICE lodged a detainer for Manvir Singh, an illegal alien from India, after he was arrested for causing a semi-truck crash that killed two people near Lodi, California.
• In May, ICE arrested Aman Kumar, an illegal alien from India, who had been released by sanctuary politicians in California after causing a hit-and-run accident that injured a 4-year-old boy in Fresno, California.
• In May, ICE lodged a detainer for Wilfredo Jose Tortolero-Arriechi, an illegal alien from Venezuela, after he had been arrested for fatally stabbing a social worker in a hospital in San Francisco, California.
• In April, ICE arrested David Antonio Aviles Perez, an illegal alien from El Salvador and MS-13 member, in San Diego, California, who has an international warrant for aggravated murder and had previously been arrested in California for assault with a deadly weapon, possession of a controlled substance, and petty theft. 
• In February, Governor Newsom pardoned Somboon Phaymany, an illegal alien from Cambodia who had been convicted for attempted murder and assault with a firearm. 
• In January, ICE lodged a detainer for Enrique Bautista Vasquez, an illegal alien from Mexico, after he had been arrested for raping an autistic girl in Cathedral City, California.
• In December 2025, ICE lodged a detainer for Brayan Alva-Rodriguez, an illegal alien from Guatemala, after he had been arrested for causing a drunk driving crash that killed an 8-year-old girl in San Diego, California.
• In December 2025, ICE lodged a detainer for Hector Balderas-Aheelor, an illegal alien from Mexico who had been previously deported FOUR times, after he was arrested for causing a felony hit-and-run accident that killed an 11-year-old boy on Thanksgiving morning. 
• In November 2025, ICE lodged a detainer for Humberto Munoz-Gatica, an illegal alien from Mexico, after he was arrested for driving under the influence and hit-and-run following a fatal crash that killed a 71-year-old man in Orange County, California.
• In October 2025, ICE lodged a detainer for Beto Cerillo-Bialva, an illegal alien from Mexico, after he was arrested for murder following a drunk-driving crash that killed six people in Napa County, California.
• In June 2025, ICE arrested Cuong Chanh Phan, an illegal alien from Vietnam, who had been convicted of second-degree murder for his involvement in a mass shooting in 1994 that killed two teenagers and injured seven others at a graduation party in San Marino, California. 
• In June 2024, Partap Singh, an illegal alien from India, caused a multi-car pileup while driving an 18-wheeler recklessly in San Bernardino, California, after he had been given a Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) by Newsom’s Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). The crash seriously injured 5-year-old Dalilah Coleman and several others.

In addition to the crimes committed by illegal aliens in California, Governor Newsom’s sanctuary policies have had disastrous consequences in other states as well. These include:

• In September, ICE lodged a detainer for Manjit Singh, an illegal alien from India, who was charged with aggravated vehicular homicide after causing a semi-truck crash that killed a woman in Brown County, Ohio. He had been granted a CDL by Newsom’s California.
• In July, ICE lodged a detainer for Axel Eduardo Chavez-Marroquin, an illegal alien from El Salvador, after he was arrested for murdering a veteran in Utah. He had twice been arrested in California for domestic violence – in Santa Ana in 2024, and then in Laguna Niguel in 2025 – but despite ICE lodging detainers against him both times, California sanctuary politicians released him from jail and back into the community.
• In January, ICE lodged detainers for Gunpreet Singh and Jasveer Singh, criminal illegal aliens from India, after they had been arrested for smuggling more than 300 pounds of cocaine in a semi-truck in Putnam County, Indiana. Governor Newsom’s DMV had given both men CDLs.
• In December 2025, ICE arrested Gerson Emir Cuadra Soto, an illegal alien from Honduras and MS-13 member who is wanted in his home country for a quadruple homicide, in Grand Island, Nebraska. He had been given a driver’s license by Newsom’s DMV.
• In November 2025, Rajinder Kumar, an illegal alien from India who had been given a CDL by Newsom’s DMV, jackknifed his semi-truck and trailer on a highway in Deschutes County, Oregon, killing a newlywed couple. ICE arrested Kumar in April 2026.
• In August 2025, ICE lodged a detainer for Harjinder Singh, an illegal alien from India, after he made an illegal U-turn in his semi-truck and killed three people in St. Lucie County, Florida. Singh had obtained his CDL in Newsom’s California.

NEW YORK STATE ANNOUNCES $1.8 MILLION TO ESTABLISH SPECIALIZED CRISIS LINE SERVING LGBTQIA+ YOUTH AND YOUNG ADULTS

Initiative Aimed at Filling the Gap Left After 988’s 'Press 3' Option was Suspended by the Federal Government

Funding Also Earmarked to Provide Specialized Training for 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline Crisis Counselors

The New York State Office of Mental Health announced the availability of $1.8 million to establish a dedicated crisis lifeline to support New York’s LGBTQIA+ youth and young adults and to train crisis counselors to be responsive to the needs of individuals in this community. The funding includes $1.2 million to operate the specialized line to serve young people in the LGBTQIA+ community and replace the ‘press 3’ option that the federal government eliminated from the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline last year.

“The LGBTQIA+ youth and young adults in crisis deserve access to a crisis lifeline that meets their immediate and specific needs, ensuring they do not face barriers to critical support,” OMH Commissioner Dr. Ann Sullivan said. “Establishing this specialized line demonstrates Governor Hochul’s commitment to improving the mental health of all New Yorkers, particularly our young people.”

Funded by an investment Governor Hochul secured in the FY 2027 Budget, the proposed crisis line will fill a critical gap for young people in New York’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning, intersex, and asexual community, after the federal government removed the ‘press 3’ option for 988 in July 2025. Prior to being shuttered, this specialized service had been used by between 50,000 and 60,000 young people per month nationwide.

Commissioner Sullivan discussed the funding for the specialized line and crisis counselor training during the 2026 LGBTQIA+ Convening at the Empire State Plaza Concourse in Albany this week. This was the fifth anniversary of the annual one-day event, which brings together policymakers and government officials from across state agencies to hear directly from advocates about the most pressing needs for this community and efforts to build support.

OMH is providing $1.2 million annually over five years for an existing qualified organization that operates a 24/7 crisis service for LGBTQIA+ youth and young adults, allowing the state to expand access to specialized services while benefiting from established clinical expertise. The funding will create a specialized line that will connect LGBTQIA+ youth and young adults with trained crisis counselors who provide culturally informed and humble crisis intervention, emotional support, safety planning, referrals, and follow-up services.

The funding opportunity also includes a one-time award of $600,000 to train hundreds of local crisis counselors who answer 988 calls to handle the needs and concerns specific to young people in the LGBTQIA+ community. The training will strengthen the knowledge, skills, and competencies of these crisis counselors in New York State to provide culturally responsive and affirming crisis services to youth and young adults.

LGBTQIA+ youth experience disproportionately higher rates of depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, suicide attempts, substance use, family rejection, bullying, discrimination, and housing instability. About 36 percent of LGBTQIA+ young people seriously considered suicide in the past year —including 40 percent of transgender and nonbinary young people –with about 10 percent of them following through with an attempt, a recent survey found.

At the same time, many LGBTQIA+ youth report having concerns about whether crisis services will understand or affirm their identities, creating barriers to seeking help when it is most needed. About 28 percent of LGBTQIA+ young people who wanted mental health care but were unable to get it cited that they didn’t feel anyone would understand their sexual orientation or gender identity, according to the survey. 

D.A. Bragg: Man Indicted For Unprovoked Attack On Tourists At Midtown McDonald’s

 

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg, Jr., announced the indictment of JUAN MERCEDES, 25, for allegedly stabbing a 19-year-old man and swinging a knife at the man’s 19-year-old friend in an unprovoked attack at a McDonald’s in Midtown in August 2026. MERCEDES is charged in a New York State Supreme Court indictment with one count each of Attempted Murder in the Second Degree, Assault in the First Degree, Assault in the Second Degree, Attempted Assault in the Second Degree and Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Fourth Degree. [1]

“New York City welcomes visitors from around the world, and those visitors deserve to feel safe while enjoying our city,” said District Attorney Bragg. “As alleged, Juan Mercedes attacked two young tourists who were spending time together, senselessly stabbing a teenager in one of Manhattan’s busiest and most visited neighborhoods. I wish the teenager – who continues to suffer from his injuries – a thorough recovery.”

As alleged in court documents and statements made on the record in court, on August 17, 2026, the victim and his two friends, who were all visiting from Australia, were eating at a table inside the McDonald’s at 490 8th Avenue. At approximately 2:00 a.m., MERCEDES allegedly walked up behind the first victim and stabbed him twice in the back, unprovoked.

As the group attempted to run away, MERCEDES chased after the victim’s friend and allegedly attempted to swing the knife at him but missed. MERCEDES exited the restaurant, holding a knife. He was arrested a few minutes later by responding police officers, who order MERCEDES to drop the knife.

The first victim was transported to a hospital and treated for two stab wounds to his torso, requiring stitches, as well as a collapsed lung. He remains significantly injured and has required emergency surgery.

Assistant D.A. Kristen Tierney is handling the prosecution of this case, under the supervision of Assistant D.A. Jessica Lynn (Chief of Trial Bureau 50), and Executive D.A. Lisa DelPizzo (Chief of the Trial Division).

D.A. Bragg thanked the New York City Police Department (NYPD), particularly Officer Alec Nelson of the Midtown South Precinct.

[1] The charges contained in the indictment are merely allegations and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. All factual recitations are derived from documents filed in court and statements made on the record in court.

BROOKLYN MAN INDICTED FOR FATALLY STABBING LONG ISLAND CITY RESIDENT

 

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Bretford Brewer was indicted for murder, weapon possession and public lewdness for the fatal stabbing of 36-year-old Carlos Penzo in the victim’s Long Island City apartment in August. Penzo was found in his bathtub with multiple stab wounds and a large knife on his stomach. Brewer was apprehended unclothed outside the apartment.

District Attorney Katz said: “As alleged, this defendant violently attacked Carlos Penzo and stabbed him multiple times in his own apartment. After killing the victim, Bretford Brewer went to a stairwell landing leading to the roof and then returned naked to the same floor as Penzo’s apartment, where he was detained by a brave building staffer until police arrived.  A grand jury has now indicted Bretford Brewer for murder and other charges as we seek to ensure justice for the victim and his loved ones.”

Brewer, 36, of Brooklyn was arraigned today on an indictment charging him with murder in the second degree, criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree and public lewdness.

Queens Supreme Court Justice Ushir Pandit-Durant continued remand and ordered him to return to court December 11. He faces up to 25 years to life in prison, if convicted.

DA Katz said that, according to the charges and investigation, on July 31, at approximately 8 p.m., Carlos Penzo arrived at the lobby of his residence, a 50-story building located at 43-25 Hunter Street in Long Island City, and went up to his fourth-floor apartment.

At approximately 9:30 p.m., Brewer arrived at the building, told a witness he was there to see Penzo and took the elevator to the victim’s apartment.

At approximately 10 a.m., the victim called 911 and provided his address, but no apartment number, before the line went silent.

At 12:27 p.m., Brewer, clad only in underwear, ascended an interior staircase of the building to a landing leading to the roof. He removed his underwear and sprayed a security camera with a fire extinguisher, which set off fire alarms and drew attention from building staff who called the fire department.

Brewer went to the 47th floor, then took the elevator back to the victim’s fourth-floor apartment where he was still completely undressed and attempted to enter Penzo’s apartment. He was confronted by a member of the building’s staff who detained him until police arrived.

Police entered Penzo’s apartment and found it in disarray, with blood splattered in the bedroom, kitchen and on the handle of the front door. A kitchen knife with a broken handle was found on the bed and another large kitchen knife was found in the kitchen sink.

Penzo was discovered in the bathtub in a seated position with multiple stab wounds to his face, neck and torso. There was a large kitchen knife on top of his stomach.

The investigation was conducted by Detective Ryan Mooney of the 108th Precinct Detective Squad and Detective Carmine Caruso of the Queens North Homicide Squad.