[9] By 12:30 a.m., the men reached the New Park Pizzeria near the intersection of Cross Bay Boulevard and 157th Avenue. On September 15, 1983, artist and model Michael Stewart died on a lower Manhattan subway platform from a chokehold and beating he received from several police officers.
Judge gives Gotti confidante probation on fraud charges He left behind a wife and three children. All Rights Reserved. I grew up in Ozone Park, an Italian American neighborhood in Queens.
Victor Amuso - Wikipedia Michael Pirone, 18, was acquitted. They also set a man's car on fire because a relative was cooperating with law enforcement on a case, prosecutors said. Howard Beach: Making a Case for Murder: Directed by Dick Lowry. Unable to start their car, they sought refuge in a nearby restaurant. 1 case in the city". Curtis Sylvester: Then 20 and a student at Florida State University, now in his late 30's. Ronald Ronnie G Giallanzo, a Howard Beach loanshark and Bonnano family captain, will have to pay a $1.25 million penalty and sell his Howard Beach mansion as part of a sentence handed down in Brooklyns federal court Wednesday. On December 20, 1986, Howard Beach emerged into the spotlight when a gang of white teens waving bats and bellowing racial slurs brutally beat three black men who chanced upon the . The other men were charged with lesser offenses. Pisani sold Giallanzo the home in New Howard Beach that the mafia boss turned into a "gargantuan" mansion that he used as "a daily visual reminder to those in his neighborhood of his wealth and power. a mob of twelve white youth awaited them with baseball bats, tire irons, and tree limbs. In reality, his men used bribes, intimidation and tampering to secure the acquittals. Winds NNW at 15 to 25 mph. Two of the victims, including Griffith, were severely beaten. A film crew was rolling on Monday near the 99th Street bridge where Pitt, above in white, and Clooney, who starred in "Ocean's 11," were seen on the set. His wife has fought to keep his and Michaels memory alive all these years, along with Michaels brother, Christopher, and Sandifords daughter, Brenda. Often it is the media that provides youth with an idea of who they are, what their culture is supposed to be like, and what roles to fulfill if they are to assimilate into the bulk of their own ethic group. And he earned another nickname, the Teflon Don, for beating three criminal trials in the 1980s. It was a time of defining change in Queens. Jayne Lester said she returned to the United States with her brothers ashes. He wasnt a dumb guy. This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. HOWARD BEACH, N.Y. - Howard Beach is no stranger to murder, but this latest slaying on Aug. 2 has the whole town talking. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. The bias attack prompted a nationwide furor over race, and a trial of the suspects followed in 1987. This story was written by Robert Gearty and Don Gentile.) The three men then stopped at New Park Pizza on Cross Bay Boulevard and had something to eat. Copyright 2009-2018, DNAinfo. [9], Griffith's death provoked strong outrage and immediate condemnation by mayor Edward Koch,[8][11] who referred to the case as the "No. Griffith, Cedric Sandiford, Timothy Grimes, and Curtis Sylvester were riding in the car in Broad Channel, Queens, about three miles south of Howard Beach. Three local teenagers, Jon Lester, Scott Kern, and Jason Ladone, were convicted of manslaughter for the death of Griffith. And unlike Gotti, he didnt like to have meetings at social clubs. 164-43 95th Street, Howard Beach, NY 11414 Listing by: Voro LLC NEW OPEN SUN, 1:30-2:30PM $949,000 5bd 3ba 2,428 sqft 95-05 165th Ave, Howard Beach, NY 11414 Listing by: Compass Greater NY, LLC NEW - 1 DAY AGO $1,200,000 7bd 5ba 79-10 149th Avenue, Jamaica, NY 11414 Listing by: Continental Real Estate Group NEW OPEN SUN, 1-3PM $245,000 Studio 1ba In December 1986, a car stalled in Howard Beach. [18] The case was revisited yet again by the media after the death of Michael Sandy, 29, who was beaten and hit by a car after being chased onto the Belt Parkway in Brooklyn, New York, in October 2006. Two women attacked from behind by group in Manhattan:, Moose on the Loose: Battle to become Yankees shortstop, Violence intervention activist killed in police-involved, Pop-up grocery store opens in Greenwich Village, Expert raises awareness during National Eating Disorder, NY Rep. Dan Goldman talks House ethics probe into, What to know about teens and their mental health, Read Across America Day kicks off at NYC bookstore, Womens History Month: Highlighting women in medicine. Now, the young man who set the wheels in motion that December night is gone as well. Feb. 5, 1988 12 AM PT United Press International NEW YORK The second of three white teen-agers convicted of chasing a black man to his death on a highway in Howard Beach was sentenced today. But the lure of the suburbs wasn't. Vincent Asaro (born 1935) is an American mobster and former captain in the Bonanno crime family. On February 5, 1989, Dellorusso along with Louis Daidone and another associate shot and killed Lucchese associate Thomas "Red" Gilmore on the orders of boss Vic Amuso, who had become suspicious of Gilmore being an informant.
And while the Bonnano and Gambino families were more influential there, the Lucchese family pulled off the notorious 1978 Lufthansa heist portrayed in Goodfellas.. The son of a man linked to the $5.8 million Lufthansa robbery of 1978 was found shot to death on a Brooklyn street yesterday, the authorities said. Italys Best-selling and Most Secretive Author, Books. He was a smooth operator, Raab said. When the group reached Howard Beach, a mostly white neighborhood, the men argued with some teens who were on their way to a party. Massino loved food and had the gut to show it, weighing 300 pounds. AN ATTACK WITH ECHOES; Where They Are Today, https://www.nytimes.com/2005/07/01/nyregion/an-attack-with-echoes-where-they-are-today.html. He was the crazy guy that other crazy guys feared, and the baddest . Phil tells co. Elizabeth Gomes, the 33-year-old straphanger who lost the vision in her right eye after being brutally attacked by an ex-con at a Howard Beach subway station in September, is convinced the. . In 1994, Lester gave his first television interview to PIX11 News and this reporter, who covered the Howard Beach trial in 1987. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. The leader of a violent home-invasion crew that terrorized Queens residents for years is headed back to the streets after receiving an early Christmas present last week a time-served prison. He rose in the familys ranks to become a capo, using the Bergin Hunt and Fish Club in Ozone Park as his command center.
Howard Beach has come 'a long way' since racial incident [8], Late on the night of Friday, December 19, 1986, four black men, Michael Griffith, 23; Cedric Sandiford, 36; Curtis Sylvester and Timothy Grimes, both 20, were traveling from Brooklyn to Queens to pick up Griffith's paycheck, when their car, a 1976 Buick,[9] broke down on a deserted stretch of Cross Bay Boulevard near the neighborhoods of Broad Channel and Far Rockaway. (Originally published by the Daily News on Dec. 21, 1986. Eight years later, after Lester was sent to prison for 10 to 30 years, PIX11 News Mary Murphyinterviewed him behind bars. In one example, prosecutors said, Giallanzo and an unidentified associate brutally assaulted a loanshark customer who had borrowed $250,000 but failed to make his weekly payments until the customer had soiled himself. FILE PHOTO, LEFT, AND OFFICE OF NEW JERSEY ATTORNEY GENERAL PHOTO, JFK Airport used in alleged Russian smuggling, Police on the lookout for burglary suspect, No lie: George Santos lived in Sunnyside as a child.
[3] The other victims were Willie Turks in 1982[3][4][5][6][7] and Yusuf Hawkins in 1989. Now in his mid-30's. And he said of the attack on December 19, 1986: It would be more accurate to say it was a turf war, more of a gang mentality.. This prompted the businessman to pay off the Gambino captain. The feds say Giallanzogained his fortune with a number of stock fraud schemes in the early 2000s, creating a loan shark business that loaned out more than $3 million "on the street.". He dispatched a crew, including Borrello, to dump gasoline on the drivers car and burn it. The move came after pressure from black leaders on Cuomo to dismiss Santucci, who was seen as too partial to the defendants to prosecute the case effectively. My peers and I were exposed to typical depictions of Italian Americans. There was an error processing your request. Ronald "Ronnie G" Giallanzo, 44 a "soldier" with the Bonanno crime family since at least 1998 ran a loan shark business and illegal gambling operations, using violence to shake down people for repayments and accumulating more than $26 million, officials said. I could have been a knee-jerk racist, Lester said, acknowledging he had been drinking that night at a Howard Beach party. Kasman was constantly around Gotti after the Howard Beach gangster took over the Gambino family in late 1985.
Al Capone | Biography, Life, Death, Alcatraz, Syphilis, & Facts Peter Tuccio . Thousands of houses went up in the large swathes of the borough that hadnt been developed already. The victim, Francis James Burke, 26 years old, of. Woman left bloodied, afraid after random attack in, Astoria Pool will be closed for entire summer, Funeral for slain Sayreville Councilwoman held in, Gunman in hazmat suit shot, killed NYC deli worker:, How to report no heat in NYC: Resources for tenants, Rising rent in NYC: Heres what tenants need to know, Suicide prevention and mental health resources, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. On Tuesday, Michael Griffiths brother, Chris, said of Lester to PIX11: He was responsible, even though my mother forgave him. Tuccio allegedly asked the businessman about the Gambino captain, then made a comment about the Mercedes Benz. Would you like to receive our weekly news email? The Mafia is a carbon copy of American capitalism, he told the Chronicle. Recent years have seen wiseguys from Howard Beach, Oakland Gardens, Whitestone and other parts of the borough go down. No gangster here quite gained Gottis level of notoriety, though. Al Capone, byname of Alphonse Capone, also called Scarface, (born January 17, 1899, Brooklyn, New York, U.S.died January 25, 1947, Palm Island, Miami Beach, Florida), American Prohibition-era gangster, who dominated organized crime in Chicago from 1925 to 1931 and became perhaps the most famous gangster in the United States. According to Acting U.S. Attorney Bridget M. Rohde, Giallanzo and his partners earned their fortune through a massive loansharking scheme, racketeering, robbery, extortion and illegal gambling. The officers refused him medical attention and forced him to tell his version of the assault several times until dawn. Griffith's death heightened racial tensions in New York City[2] and was the second of three highly publicized, racially motivated killings of black men by white mobs in New York City in the 1980s. In key ways, though, their personalities were very different. reputation of my neighborhood and Howard Beach (one mile away) as being centers of mafia activity had a huge influence on the youth growing up there. In 2017, Asaro was sentenced to eight years in prison for a case of extreme road rage. I thank our colleagues at the FBI and the Eastern District of New York for their dedication in helping us hold accountable anyone who commits violence in order to spread fear, especially when its in the form of organized crime.. March 03, 2022 / Jacob Kaye / Crime, news. The leader of a violent home-invasion crew that terrorized Queens residents for years is headed back to the streets after receiving an early Christmas present last week a time-served prison sentence of five years. Old Howard and Hamilton Beach residents woke up on Monday to see their streets covered with 6 inches to a foot of water, caused by a winter storm increasing the high tide surges to. Giallanzo allegedly screamed at the customer, Wheres the fing money? as he attacked him. A black man, Glenn Moore, was beaten severely with a metal baseball bat by Nicholas Minucci, who was convicted of hate crimes in 2006. The teens started chasing the three men and Griffith ended up dead on the Belt Parkway.
True crime story. Serving 40-year prison sentence in Virginia for wounding brother and for crimes committed in prison. That is case in Howard and Hamilton Beach, where chronic flooding and drainage issues persist, most recently with winter storm Elliott that hit right before Christmas and most notably with. Other leaders, including newly elected black Congressman Floyd Flake and Brooklyn activists Sonny Carson and Rev. If Italian American parents use education as a tool to defeat ignorance, we can resume control of our own identities and prove the media wrong. Asaro was cut off in traffic in Ozone Park and had someone figure out the drivers address from the license plate number. Error! Al Sharpton led 1,200 marchers on Cross Bay Boulevard in late December 1986, demanding a special prosecutor take over the case from Queens District Attorney John Santucci. Vittorio "Little Vic" Amuso (born November 4, 1934) is an American mobster and the boss of the Lucchese crime family.He was described as "The Deadly Don" by Assistant United States Attorney Charles Rose. HOWARD BEACH A mafia boss and nine wise guys including a prominent Broad Channel business owner were arrested Tuesday in a massive federal bust stemming from nearly 20 years of botched. Lived with Mr. Griffith and his mother. Tells British newspaper in 2001 that he is not a racist and that he now has a Bangladeshi girlfriend. Kasman gave Gotti a no-show job at his garment district zipper firm and paid his bills . We can do this by learning about real Italian Americans in history, like Joe Petrosino.
Vincent Asaro - Wikipedia Do you find this information helpful? The Italian-American policeman Joe Petrosino, Many Italian Americans acquire their notions of heritage from depictions in popular media. November 18, 2020 Howard Beach man files motion to vacate gang assault conviction based on prosecutorial misconduct allegations Home / Law / Crime / Politics / Communities / Voices / All Stories / Who We Are / Terms and Conditions, Howard Beach mobster sentenced to 10 years for arson, Howard Beach man files motion to vacate gang assault conviction based on prosecutorial misconduct allegations, St. Johns senior strives for seat in City Council, Howard Beach man dies in police custody after release from Jamaica Hospital, Sentencing delayed in Vetrano murder case, The man convicted of murdering Karina Vetrano faces sentencing as questions linger, Judge denies defense motions after anonymous letter rocks Vetrano trial, Assistant District Attorney Brad Leventhal, Prosecution, Defense Rest Their Cases on Trial Day 7, Jury Selection Slated for Vetrano Murder Case, Jig Is Up For Howard Beach Bonanno Family Loan Shark, Click here to subscribe to the daily digital edition of the Queens Daily Eagle. The deli will be forfeited as part of the investigation, according to the release. LA RICETTA. Ive been reviewing wrongful convictions cases for 25 years this is the worst case Ive ever seen., Most people dont think young people can lead, but we have been leading the social movement.. Lesters sister, Jayne, told the New York Timesthat her brother was haunted by guilt dreams but was not a cold-blooded killer. If your child will play baseball or softball this spring, youll need to stock up on appropriate clothing and equipment. Scott Kern: Member of the gang, from Howard Beach. That had never been done before by one of the heads of the Five Families. A Howard Beach man with alleged ties to the Gambino crime family was sentenced to a decade in prison. I can honestly say, when I grew up, I wanted to be a gangster, Lester told me in 1994. His arrest record began in 2003, at age 19, and he had a well-earned reputation in Howard Beach as a menace to society for more than a decade. Ministers Floyd Flake and Herbert Daughtry and activist Sonny Carson urged boycotts of white-owned businesses and pizzerias. [9], Ultimately nine people would be convicted on a variety of charges related to Griffith's death. Friend of Michael Griffith's family. [9], Black civil-rights activist Al Sharpton organized several protests in Howard Beach and nearby neighborhoods. One escaped, but a third, Michael Griffith, ran onto the Belt Parkway, where he was struck and killed by a car. An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup. The victim was Karina Vetrano, 30, a self-described . Sentenced to life without parole, he died of throat cancer in 2002 at a Missouri hospital for federal prisoners. But the lure of the suburbs wasnt South Queens only draw for someone like Gotti. Peter Tuccio, 29, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge La Shann DeArcy Hall to 10 years in prison for the crime after pleading guilty to arson charges in . The operation was so lucrative, agents said, that it enabled Giallanzo to transform his ranch home into a multimillion-dollar McMansion resembling something out of The Sopranos.. The other participants received lighter sentences, and in most cases, community service. In 2005, the Griffith case was brought back to the public's attention after another racial attack in Howard Beach. During protests, mostly black marchers carried signs comparing the neighborhood to South Africa during apartheid, while white residents displayed signs reading "Niggers Go Home", "White Power", and "Bring Back Slavery". The bum husband even dragged his wife to a Manhattan TD. Convicted of manslaughter and assault and sentenced to as many as 30 years in prison. Gangsters Inc. is the best place for the latest news and in-depth reporting on the Mafia and organized crime from around the world. I was never brought up to have any kind of hatred toward anyone, Lester told PIX11 in 1994. Massino didnt want his men to bring cell phones to meetings. Teaching future generations of Italian Americans about heroes like Joe Petrosino contributes to the positive image of Italian Americans. [9] The youths chased the men, and Sandiford and Griffith were seriously beaten. Initially he was considered a suspect and placed in a squad car. The airport was a major, major, major boon to all five organized crime families, said Philip Messing, a longtime crime reporter for the New York Post. The back story on the event that came to be known as simply Howard Beach would exacerbate racial tensions in the city, at a time when Ed Koch was mayor. [1][2] His body was found on the highway at 1:03 a.m.[8], When police found Sandiford walking west on the highway, they brought him to the site of Griffith's body and, without providing medical attention, searched him and placed him in a squad car before interrogating him for several hours. A year later, on October 29, an elderly grandmother, Eleanor Bumpers, was murdered by a police officer in her Bronx apartment as he and other officers tried to evict her. Restoring the Beautiful Italy. However, by then hungry and tired, the men decided to dine and rest at the New Park Pizzeria on Cross Bay Boulevard. Released in 2000. As far as reconstructing a positive image of Howard Beach, we have a long way to go. 1 of 10. During the summer of 2006, the crew set out to kill another man from Howard Beach and was responsible for at least four shootings over three months in the neighborhood, according to the indictment. Then 17, now in his mid-30's. Yet we should know the truth about our own heritage and defeat ignorant stereotypes before they spread further. Whenever theres something lucrative, they will exploit it. As alleged in court filings, in 2015, a businessman who had been extorted for years by a captain in the Gambino crime family began to avoid the mobster in an effort to stop making his annual extortionate payment. He was old-fashioned, very secluded, the historian explained. Idlewild Airport, having begun operations in 1948, was becoming a major job hub. Griffith fled onto a highway where he was fatally struck by a passing car. Gambino family boss John Gotti, left, and Bonnano boss Joseph Massino were two of Queens most powerful wiseguys. In March 1980, Gottis 12-year-old son, Frank, was riding his minibike near his parents 85th Street home in Howard Beach when neighbor John Favara fatally struck him with his car. On December 21, 1987, the jury found three of the four principal defendants guilty of second degree manslaughter and first degree assault, but innocent on attempted murder and riot charges. Howard Beach man charged in Lufthansa heist: Jamaica man pleads guilty in Federal Reserve bomb plot, Jimmy Meng pleads guilty in wire fraud case, Former St. Johns dean Cecilia Chang found dead, Calls from Moscow follows four queer Cuban migrants holed up, Valerie White, Senior Executive Director of Local. Michael Griffith: Then 23, from Brooklyn. Apparently, the settlement of the area can be traced back to two major occurrences: the construction of the Long Island Railroad and the development of the area by William J. Howard. Then they dragged his fiance out of bed, tied her up, ripped a Cartier engagement ring off her finger and looted the house of $50,000 in cash and hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of jewelry, the prosecutors wrote. howard beach, eastern district of new york. [13], After witnesses repeatedly refused to cooperate with Queens district attorney John J. Santucci, then-governor Mario Cuomo appointed Charles Hynes as special prosecutor to handle the Griffith case on January 13, 1987. This animal is now free to do the same thing all over again, said one longtime neighbor who spoke only on a promise of anonymity. ANTHONY RAMIREZ.
Bonanno rat busted for threatening to kill ex-gal pal's hubby [12], The Griffith family, as well as Cedric Sandiford, retained the services of Alton H. Maddox and C. Vernon Mason, two attorneys who would become involved in the Tawana Brawley hoax the following year. Giallanzo, Pisani and Boothbywere also charged with illegal gambling, and Padavonaand Tanico were charged with obstruction of justice for giving false testimony to a grand jury in the case, officials said. He also urged his men to frequently check their car mirrors to see if they were being followed, Raab said. You have permission to edit this article. The release of Borrello has outraged residents of Howard Beach a neighborhood that boasts more than a few wiseguy residents and usually has a high tolerance for mob antics. But its far from dead.
Former Gang Member Gives 15-Year-Old Wannabe Gangster a - YouTube Mob Associates Violently Ruled Street Loan Biz in Queens, Feds Say The primary mission of the NYPD and our law enforcement partners is to arrest, prosecute and send away with meaningful prison sentences those who instill fear in New Yorkers through their criminal actions, NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewell said. The judge scheduled a hearing to review a defense motion for Monday, April 22. Some decrease in clouds late. The facts show that nowadays many Italian Americans are educated professionals that earn honest livings.
A Murder in Howard Beach, the Ghost of John Gotti and John Travolta in In 2013, he was released from prison into the witness protection program.
Howard Beach Memorial Day Parade returns | | qchron.com The CasaBlanca restaurant on 60th Lane in Maspeth that former Bonnano boss Joseph Massino partly owned may have closed years ago, but pedestrians can still observe a sign for its Crystal Room.. Early History Howard Beach was founded in the 1890s by William J. Howard, a Brooklyn glove manufacturer who operated a 150-acre goat farm on meadow land near .
History of Howard Beach - Queens: The Brand Residents Don't Buy Giallanzo and Padavona are additionally accused of plotting in the summer of 2006 to kill a man who robbed members of Giallanzos crew. Released in 2002. It is not shocking how little Italian Americans as know about historical figures of their own ancestry, like Joe Petrosino, who represents positive aspects of our culture and heritage.
Preview Clip: Howard Beach, Making A Case For Murder (1989) Underwear heiress wins lawsuit against husband - New York Post At 1:00 a.m. when the police arrived at the scene, they encountered a bloody and dazed Sandiford nearby, walking west on the parkway.
The Rise and Fall of New York's Most Feared Gangster | OZY Then, Gotti underboss Sammy The Bull Gravano having turned on him the year before, federal prosecutors convicted Gotti in 1992 on five counts of murder and other charges. RSS . What do the orange, green dots on my iPhone mean? Federal agents cuffed an alleged mafia captain from Howard Beach and nine of his associates on Tuesday for engaging in racketeering, murder attempts, shootings, loansharking and other violent. Giallanzo could face between 21 and 27 years in prison if convicted of the charges; the others could spend anywhere between four and 24 years behind bars if theyre found guilty. Mention the word mafia to any Italian American in New York and a few typical responses will resound from them. One of the four black men inside remained with the car, while the other three walked to get help. Ronald (aka Ronnie G) Giallanzo, 46, is a reputed acting captain in the Bonnano crime family who allegedly led a criminal enterprise that reaped more than $26 million in earnings since 1998, federal prosecutors said. Chanel Lewis face sentencing more than two and a half years after Karina Vetranos murder. New York mayor Edward Koch compared the attack on the men to a lynching. Outside Sparks Steakhouse on 46th Street in Manhattan, Gambino boss Paul Castellano was assassinated on the orders of John Gotti, who took over the crime family and ran it from his social club in Ozone Park. The next morning, police chief Benjamin Ward reprimanded the officers for their treatment of Sandiford. The Oscars will air on ABC and can be streamed on ABC.com and the ABC app as well as Hulu + Live TV, YouTube TV, AT&T TV or FuboTV. Borrello also helped take down a marquee name: John J. Gotti, the 23-year-old namesake grandson of the late Mafia boss. [1][8] As Sylvester, the owner of the car, remained behind, the other three men walked about three miles north to the mostly white neighborhood[1][8] of Howard Beach to find a pay phone. BlackPast.org is a 501(c)(3) non-profit and our EIN is 26-1625373. All 10 suspects were charged with racketeering conspiracy. [14], Twelve defendants were indicted by a grand jury on February 9, 1987, including the original three charged in the case. A former gang member has a powerful message for a 15-year-old who is going down a criminal path of drug dealing, stealing and carrying guns.Dr. The other defendants charged with Giallanzo were Queens residents Michael Padavona, 48, Michael Palmaccio, 45, Christopher Boothby, 37, Evan Greenberg, 45, Richard Heck, 45, Michael Hintze, 45, Robert Pisani, 44 and Robert Tanico, 49; and Nicholas Festa, 36, of Oceanside, NY. HOWARD BEACH A mafia boss and nine wise guys including a prominent Broad Channel business owner were arrested Tuesday in a massive federal bust stemming from nearly 20 years of botched murders andother violent crimes throughout Queens, federal prosecutors said. martin guitar service center; white stuff in bottom of canned green beans This exemplifies the negative images of Italian Americans that dominate pop culture and need to be put to an end. Sweet Dough Balls Like Chestnuts for Your Italian Carnival, Big Changes to Boost Milan Mens Fashion Week, Furla Celebrates 1st Anniversary of 5th Ave Flagship, A New BiographyToscanini: Musician of Conscience, Elena Ferrante. Thanks for contacting us. Koch compared the incident to a lynching while Ward scolded the Queens commanding officer for his officers insensitivity toward Sandiford. The other defendants were convicted of lesser charges; most were sentenced to community service. Only now is the New York media learning that the convicted ringleader in the 1986 Howard Beach racial attack took his own life in England at the age of 48. Lester, who was born inWales, acknowledged it was tough being accepted there in Howard Beach.