Bronx Man Charged With 2014 Murder

  Geoffrey S. Berman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, William F. Sweeney Jr., the Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), and James P. O’Neill, Commissioner of the New York City Police Department (“NYPD”), announced the return of a superseding indictment charging ALEXANDER MELENDEZ, a/k/a “Kiki,” with the murder of Shaquille Malcolm.  MELENDEZ, who is already in federal custody on other charges, will be arraigned on the superseding indictment on December 29, 2018, before United States District Judge Lewis A. Kaplan. 

U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said:  “As alleged, the defendant murdered 20-year-old Shaquille Malcolm in the Bronx in 2014.  Now, thanks to the outstanding work of the FBI and NYPD, the defendant has been charged with this terrible crime.  We will continue to work with our partners in law enforcement to hold violent criminals responsible for their actions.”

FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge William F. Sweeney Jr. stated:  “As demonstrated by the addition of murder charges to Melendez’s alleged crimes, the illegal drug trade often leads to additional violent criminal activity that threatens the safety and security of our communities.  This individual believed himself to be above the law, and now he will face justice for his alleged crimes.  The FBI and our law enforcement partners will continue to root out these violent criminals and ensure they are held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.”

According to the Superseding Indictment[1]: 

In early 2014, MELENDEZ was a member of a conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine in the Allerton section of the Bronx, New York.  On January 2, 2014, as part of this conspiracy, MELENDEZ and others shot Shaquille Malcolm multiple times in the stairwell of an apartment building located at 2818 Bronx Park East in the Bronx.  Malcolm died at the scene.

MELENDEZ, 23,  is charged with one count of conspiring to distribute 280 grams and more of crack cocaine, which carries a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison and maximum of life in prison; one count of using, carrying, and possessing firearms during and in relation, and in furtherance of, a drug trafficking crime and aiding and abetting the same, which carries a mandatory consecutive 10 year sentence in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison; one count of use of a firearm to commit murder in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime and aiding and abetting the same, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison or death; and one count of murder while engaged in a conspiracy to distribute 280 grams and more of crack cocaine and aiding and abetting the same, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison or death.  The statutory maximum penalties are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant would be determined by the judge.

Mr. Berman praised the outstanding investigative work of the FBI and NYPD.

The charges contained in the Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

[1]  As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Indictment and the descriptions of the Indictment constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.