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Second suspect pleads not guilty in grandmother’s murder

By Sadef Ali Kully

Months after grandmother Leta Webb was gunned down in the doorway to her South Jamaica home, a second suspect has pleaded not guilty to murder charges, the Queens district attorney said.

Webb was shot and killed in March in her South Jamaica doorway

Saleh Green, 19, of South Ozone Park was arrested by police last week and charged with murder, criminal possession of a weapon and tampering with evidence to conceal or destroy, according to court records. Webb was killed in March.

Green pleaded not guilty to all charges before Judge Richard Buchter in Queens Criminal Court in Kew Gardens Oct. 6.

The first suspect in the case, Julian Douglas, 22, also from South Ozone Park, was arrested and charged in April following a long search by police, the DA said. He was also charged with murder, criminal possession of a weapon and tampering with evidence to conceal or destroy, the court records showed.

According to the criminal complaint, Douglas allegedly shot Webb twice, once in the head and left forearm March 31, when she opened the door of her home on 119th Avenue near Baisley Park in South Jamaica after a loud pounding disturbed her at around 1:30 a.m.

Last month, a grand jury indicted Douglas and Green on charges of aiding each other and acting in concert with the intent to murder, possession of a weapon and tampering with physical evidence, according to court records.

Police said a video surveillance camera caught images of a white Ford Econoline Van that was reportedly used as part of the getaway vehicle and there was $2,000 reward for tips on the case back in April.

Webb, who was 71, was rushed to Jamaica Hospital where she was pronounced dead, police said.

Sources close to the police investigation speculated that the murder, which shook the neighborhood’s residents, might have been a gang-related crime. Webb’s adopted son, Arnold Webb, a member of the Bloods, is serving 25 years to life in prison for manslaughter.

Webb, who had five children and emigrated to the United States over 40 years ago, was a native of Belize.

Reach Reporter Sadef Ali Kully by e-mail at skully@cnglocal.com or by phone at (718) 260–4546.