A California man was arrested following a three-year homicide investigation and has been brought back to Queens to stand trial.
Charles Williams, 35, who was living in Sacramento, was charged in the murder of 26-year-old Darryl Whitfield, in a Jackson Heights parking lot, police said.
At 7:02 a.m. on Sept. 30, 2018, police responded to a 911 call regarding an assault at an Auto Zone store located at 95-01 Northern Blvd. Upon arriving at the scene, officers found Darryl Whitfield, 26, in the back seat of a parked car, unconscious and unresponsive, with trauma to his head. EMS responded to the location and declared Whitfield dead at the scene, according to police.
Two days later, the NYPD arrested Careem Holder, 30, of Brooklyn, who allegedly admitted to carrying a handgun with him on two occasions and returning to the scene to destroy evidence, police said.
The NYPD had identified Williams as a suspect in the case after an eyewitness had seen Williams and Whitfield together. The NYPD Fugitive Task Force recently traced Williams to the Carmichael section of Sacramento and put out a warrant for his arrest on March 10.
Sacramento law enforcement arrested Williams on March 26 and he was transported back to Queens on June 25 where he is awaiting arraignment on charges of murder, criminal possession of a weapon and tampering with physical evidence, according to the NYPD.
Holder is scheduled to be sentenced for his role in the murder on Aug. 12.
