Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced Wednesday the release of surveillance video of the cold case murder of an off-duty Rikers Island correction officer in Springfield Gardens more than four years ago.
During the early morning hours of Aug. 15, 2020, 28-year-old NYC Correction Officer John Jeff was gunned down at the corner of Defoe Street and Ridgedale Street while heading to a house party just a mile away from his Farmers Boulevard home in Rochdale.
The fatal shooting was captured by a nearby security camera, and the footage was not previously released publicly by investigators. The DA also appealed for the public’s help in identifying the gunman or gunmen behind the cold-blooded murder.
“My office has been investigating the murder of an off-duty Correction Officer for over four years,” Katz said. “Although cases grow cold, they are never forgotten.”
According to the ongoing investigation, at approximately 3 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 15, 2020, Jeff was a passenger in a black Chevy Malibu that briefly pulled over at a fire hydrant on Ridgedale Street. His female friend, who was a fellow correction officer, was behind the wheel of Malibu.
While blocked by a garbage truck up the road, the driver attempted to reverse her vehicle but was blocked by a black Mercedes and a blue BMW. Jeff exited the Malibu and asked the drivers to back up. A verbal altercation took place with the occupants of the Mercedes. Jeff identified himself as an officer and drew his firearm. The driver of the Mercedes put it in reverse, allowing Jeff to get back into the Malibu, which made a left turn onto Defoe Street.
Seconds later, the Malibu was blocked a second time by a white Infinity traveling in the opposite direction down Defoe Street. Someone tapped on the car, and Jeff exited the vehicle again. A second argument ensued.
At the time of the second dispute, people from the nearby house party had also begun to gather. Gunfire erupted moments later, and the black Mercedes, the blue BMW, and the white Infinity immediately fled the scene.
Police from the 113th Precinct in Jamaica responded to a 911 call of a person shot in front of 187-09 Ridgedale St., where they found Jeff lying on the ground, unconscious and unresponsive, with eight gunshot wounds to his head, left arm, and left leg. EMS responded to the crime scene and rushed Jeff to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 3:37 a.m.
Thirteen shell casings, along with two fired bullets, one deformed bullet, and two live cartridges, were found at the scene of the fatal shooting. A subsequent analysis determined that the bullets were fired from two different firearms. Investigators believe that Jeff may have been shot with his own firearm after he was shot with a perpetrator’s handgun, as Jeff’s holster was empty, and the service firearm was not found at the scene.
“We hope that by publicly releasing this surveillance footage, we will bring more attention to this senseless unsolved murder,” Katz said. She urged anyone with information to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website at crimestoppers.nypdonline.org or on X (platform formerly known as Twitter) @NYPDTips. All tips are confidential, and a $30,000 reward is offered for information that leads to an arrest or arrests in the cold case homicide investigation.
“I urge anyone with any information regarding the August 15, 2020, homicide of John Jeff to come forward and help us bring justice for John and his loved ones,” Katz said.
