By Howard Koplowitz
There was only one murder in the precinct Ð which covers Woodhaven, Richmond Hill, Kew Gardens and part of Ozone Park Ð in 2007, compared to 10 in 2006 Ð a 90 percent drop.No other precinct in Queens recorded more than a 55 percent decline in murders, according to the statistics.The lone murder occurred May 10, when Guiatree Hardat, a Queens College student and Brooklyn resident, was shot and killed on Atlantic Avenue between 81st and 82nd streets, according to Queens DA Richard Brown.Hardat's on-again off-again police officer boyfriend from Queens, Harry Rupnarine, 37, has been charged with the murder, Brown said. He was off duty at the time.Only one of the seven major crime categories Ð identified as murders, car thefts, rapes, burglaries, grand larcenies, robberies and felony assaultsÐ saw an increase in the 102nd from 2006 to 2007.The second-largest drop besides murders was car thefts, which saw about a 24 percent decline. There were 402 reports of stolen cars in the 102nd in 2006, compared to 307 in 2007.The precinct recorded four fewer rapes in 2007 than it did in 2006 Ð about a 17 percent drop. There were 23 recorded rapes in 2006, compared to 19 in 2007.Three other categories that saw declines dropped by less than 10 percent.Burglaries fell in the precinct by about 9 percent. There were 411 burglaries in the 102nd in 2006, compared to 372 in 2007.With about a 7 percent drop, grand larcenies had the fifth-largest decline of the sixth categories that saw decreases. There were 407 grand larcenies in the precinct in 2006 and 379 in 2007.Robberies represented the smallest decline in the precinct, with nine fewer recorded in 2007 than 2006. There were 323 robberies in the 102nd during 2006, compared to 314 in 2007.Felony assault was the only category to see an increase from 2006 to 2007, the statistics showed. There were five more felony assaults in the 102nd during that span, with 222 in 2006 and 227 in 2007.Reach reporter Howard Koplowitz by e-mail at hkoplowitz@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 173.
