R.H. Man Killed Roommate’s Friend
A Richmond Hill man is spending the next decade in state prison after being sentenced last Wednesday, Jan. 11, for killing a friend of his roommate in a January 2010 argument that erupted over a verbal misunderstanding, it was announced.
Luis Zeledon, 27, formerly of 123rd Street, was ordered by Queens Supreme Court Justice Gregory L. Lasak to serve 10 years behind bars after pleading guilty last November to first-degree manslaughter for the fatal stabbing of 28-year-old Andy Herrera.
The victim died shortly after the Jan. 19, 2010 attack at Jamaica Hospital Medical Center from injuries including a pierced heart.
“The defendant’s violent actions took the life of a young man who was coming to the aid of his friend,” Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown said in a statement last Wednesday. “He has proven himself unfit for society. Today’s sentence is more than warranted.”
Law enforcement sources said the incident occurred at around 11:30 p.m. on the night of Jan. 19, 2010 inside the apartment on 123rd Street between Jamaica and 89th avenues which Zeledon shared with his girlfriend and a male friend.
Reportedly, Herrera was with the three individuals when Zeledon and his girlfriend decided to retire to bed. At some point, authorities stated, Zeledon thought he heard his male roommate make a disparaging remark toward him.
Zeledon and his male roommate became embroiled in a verbal dispute in the kitchen, according to prosecutors. The argument turned physical when Zeledon reportedly picked up a pair of kitchen knives and used one of them to cut the male roommate on the forearm.
Hearing the argument taking place, law enforcement sources said, Herrera came to the roommate’s aid, using a chair as a shield. Police said Zeledon then attacked Herrera, stabbing him once in the chest. The victim dropped the chair and ran out of the apartment, then collapsed in the vestibule.
Members of the 102nd Precinct and EMS units responded to the scene. Herrera was taken to Jamaica Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries a short time later.
Following an investigation by the 102nd Precinct Detective Squad, Zeledon was arrested the day after the fatal attack and originally booked on manslaughter and weapons possession charges.
The case was prosecuted by Senior Assistant District Attorney Denise Tirino of the D.A.’s Homicide Trials Bureau, under the supervision of Assistant District Attorneys Brad A. Leventhal, bureau chief, and Jack Warsawsky, deputy bureau chief.
