Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Carlos Garcia was charged with manslaughter in the death of a 48-year-old man who was allegedly pushed onto the subway tracks at the Roosevelt Avenue-Jackson Heights station after a fight broke out between the two on Oct. 17.
Garcia, 50, of 133rd Street in South Ozone Park, was arraigned late Tuesday on charges of manslaughter in the second degree and assault in the second degree. The judge ordered the defendant to return to court on Oct. 21. If convicted, he faces up to 15 years in prison.
“The subway system is a vital lifeline for the millions of New Yorkers who depend on it to get around our great city,” Katz said. “The recent spate of violence on trains and in stations is a threat not only to commuters, but to the city’s economic and social vitality. The violence must end. We must do everything we can to ensure that all New Yorkers can commute safely, and to that end we have charged the defendant and will be holding him accountable.”
According to the DA, at approximately 4:40 p.m. inside the Roosevelt Avenue-Jackson Heights subway station, Garcia assaulted the victim, Heriberto Quintana of Jamaica, causing him to fall onto the tracks at the exact time an F train approached the station.
Quintana was rushed by EMS units to nearby Elmhurst Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Forest Hills- and Jamaica-bound trains were forced to skip the Jackson Heights-Roosevelt Avenue station while police investigated the scene.
