By Gabriel Rom
Charles Jordan, 46, an MTA train operator from Valley Stream LI., has been with charged in the death of a well-known Forest Hills jeweler to the stars in a suspected road rage incident, the Queens district attorney said.
Jordan is awaiting arraignment in Queens Criminal Court on the charges of second-degree murder, first-degree manslaughter, leaving the scene of an incident without reporting a death and criminal possession of a weapon, the DA said Thursday afternoon. Bail was set at $500,000. If convicted, Jordan could face up to 25 years to life in prison.
“The defendant is accused of viciously running down and killing a 40-year-old man, who was standing in front of his home. The victim didn’t have a chance,” Queens DA Richard Brown said.
“He was allegedly brutally rammed by a 1,000-plus-pound, high-speed vehicle that violently threw him to the ground. This was a senseless, violent death that could have easily been prevented.”
According to the DA, just after 11 p.m. July 19, Aron Aranbayev, 40, was stepping out of a vehicle that was dropping him off by his home when a heated argument ensued between him and Johnson. Following the argument Johnson allegedly put his Dodge Magnum into reverse and backed up, changed gears back to drive, accelerated, and intentionally slammed into the victim, speeding away without stopping, the DA said.
Aranbayev was thrown to the ground, according to court documents. Aranbayev succumbed to his injuries at Jamaica Hospital the next day.
Aranbayev, a husband and father of four young children,, who was a co-owner of Rafaello & Co., an exclusive Diamond District jewelry store in Manhattan, leaves behind a 7-month-old baby. He was known as a jeweler for celebrities, including boxer Floyd Mayweather.
Reach reporter Gabriel Rom by e-mail at grom@
