Retired Cop In Cuffs For Ozone Park Killing
As their two children looked on, a retired police officer allegedly shot his wife to death in their Ozone Park home during a dispute last Saturday morning, Apr. 19, police reported.
Authorities said Kevin Canty, 43, gunned down Jessica Mera-Canty, 40, at about 11 a.m. last Saturday in their 104th Street residence.
Their two children-a 7-year-old boy and a 4-year-old girl-reportedly witnessed the shooting, then fled from the home to a nearby bodega, where police were notified.
Officers collared Canty a short time later several blocks away from the crime scene. The former officer was previously assigned to the NYPD Transit Bureau in Manhattan before retiring last year due to an undisclosed disability, sources noted.
According to published reports, Canty claimed he shot Mera-Canty after he allegedly discovered she was having an extramarital affair. He reportedly confronted Mera-Canty after she and their two children returned home last Saturday morning, leading to an argument.
Law enforcement sources said Canty shot his wife 10 times in the chest with a handgun, then fled from the home on foot.
Officers from the 102nd Precinct and EMS units responded to the shooting. The children were found in the bodega unharmed.
Paramedics, meanwhile, rushed Mera-Canty to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead on arrival.
During a search, authorities said, police officers located Canty at the corner of 97th and Centreville streets; published reports indicated the suspect appeared intoxicated.
Canty was taken into custody and later booked by the 102nd Precinct Detective Squad for second-degree murder and criminal possession of a weapon.
During his arraignment hearing on Sunday, Apr. 20, court records noted, Canty was ordered held without bail by Queens Criminal Court Judge Gia Morris. The suspect is due back in court on May 7.
