More Security Called For In Wake Of Astoria Murders

In an attempt to calm a community petrified by a double homicide, City Council Speaker Peter Vallone addressed Astoria residents Monday, telling the community that the City is beefing up its security and utilizing all of its resources to apprehend the killers who took the lives of two supermarket employees last week.
"This community is safe," said Vallone outside his Astoria district office. "What happened last week was a complete aberration…It just proves we can never be too secure."
Vallone said residents will see more police in the streets, and an intense investigation will ensue to find the people who were responsible for the Trade Fair murders and bring them to justice. He insisted that Astoria still remains a safe neighborhood, despite a report stating that this latest theft was only one of six robberies to hit the community since June.
"It is our first priority to use all of our resources to make sure our residents are safe," said Vallone. "This was a tragedy of the worst kind. Thats why we need to take action immediately for the good of this neighborhood."
Businesses and residents in and around Astoria were shocked after hearing that Pedro Narvaez, 40, of Astoria, and Lucio Moran, 36, were both stabbed several times during a robbery of the Trade Fair supermarket on Ditmars Blvd.
Police said the break-in was discovered when another employee found a shattered glass window when he approached the supermarket. The employee then drove to another Trade Fair nearby, and notified the owner.
The owner then called police, who shortly thereafter entered the supermarket and found the lifeless bodies in separate areas of the basement, officials said.
Police also found the stores first floor office in disarray, but the office safe was undisturbed.
No other employees were working in the supermarket at that time.
Chief of Detectives William Allee said last weekend that the police did not yet have a suspect in the double murder, which took place between midnight and 4:30 a.m. Allee said some property was stolen, but did not give details.
Shopkeepers around the neighborhood say they cant remember the last time Astoria saw violence of this nature. They say part of the reason is that the City has transformed over the years from being a quiet, docile neighborhood to an over-populated shopping town. A liquor store employee on Ditmars said that outsiders are attracted to Astorias low prices and its close proximity to the city.
"You would never see something like this around here three years ago," said an employee who wished to remain anonymous. "But now with all of these people, a freak accident like this is bound to occasionally happen. I now fear for the lives of my family and friends who live here, knowing that this town isnt what it used to be."