A Queens grand jury indicted Jamaica resident Stephen Giraldo Friday, Jan. 27, for attempted murder, assault, and other charges for allegedly running over his estranged wife and then stabbing her with a knife in front of her Flushing home in December, according to Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz.
Giraldo, 36, of 144th Street in Jamaica, was additionally charged in the 12-count indictment at Queens Supreme Court with endangering the welfare of a child– the couple’s three children were inside his Ford Explorer at the time of the incident.
According to the charges, at around 5:20 a.m. on Dec. 27, video surveillance footage shows Giraldo enter the driver’s seat of a white 2005 Ford Explorer parked near the intersection of Parsons Boulevard and Sanford Avenue, according to the complaint. The defendant’s three children — ages 6, 9, and 11 — were seated in the white SUV.
When Giraldo’s estranged wife, 41-year-old Sophia Giraldo, walked in front of the vehicle, the defendant allegedly ordered the children to “keep your seat belt on” and accelerated, barreling the SUV directly into the victim. Following the collision, the vehicle flipped over onto its side. Giraldo allegedly crawled out of the passenger side window of the Explorer and stabbed the victim with a knife.
Giraldo was on the scene in front of his estranged wife’s home at 41-80 Parsons Blvd. when police from the 109th Precinct in Flushing arrived and he was taken into custody. The children were not harmed in the collision, according to the NYPD.
EMS responded to the crime scene and rushed the victim to NewYork-Presbyterian Queens Hospital for treatment of her injuries, including severe neurological damage, broken bones in her leg and a stab wound that punctured her liver, according to the criminal complaint.
“This is a heartbreaking crime,” Katz said. “This savage attack, committed in full view of the victim’s three young children, stirred outrage across the city. Our thoughts are with the victim and her children. We will hold accountable the person responsible for this brutality.”
Giraldo is pending arraignment in Queens Supreme Court. If convicted, he faces up to 25 years in prison.
