Author: Allie Griffin

City Health Officials “Strongly Recommend” Indoor Mask Use for All New Yorkers

Aug. 2, 2021 By Allie Griffin Mayor Bill de Blasio and city health officials are “strongly recommending” New Yorkers to mask up indoors regardless of their vaccination status. De Blasio issued the recommendation Monday, but stopped short of calling for mandatory mask use—unlike what officials in some other big U.S. cities have done. The announcement… Read more »

Brooklyn Teen Charged With Murder in Shooting Death of 17-Year-Old in Elmhurst

Aug. 2, 2021 By Allie Griffin A Brooklyn teen was charged with murder Friday for the shooting death of a 17-year-old boy that took place in Elmhurst last month. Dennis Vassilenko, 18, was charged with murder and other crimes for allegedly shooting and killing Eduardo Hernandez Martinez on an Elmhurst street in broad daylight on… Read more »

House Passes AOC’s Funding Requests for Several Community Projects

Aug. 2, 2021 By Allie Griffin The U.S. House of Representatives has passed Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s 10 funding requests for community services — of which eight requests are for projects in Queens and two in the Bronx. The House passed a bill late Thursday that includes an allocation for updating the obstetrical facilities at Elmhurst… Read more »

Flushing Man Sentenced to Prison for Selling Drugs and Possessing Gun

July 30, 2021 By Allie Griffin A Flushing man was sentenced to prison Friday for selling drugs to an undercover officer and being in possession of a gun in 2019. Chris Lee, 30, was sentenced to nine years in prison Friday after pleading guilty in May to charges of gun possession and selling illegal narcotics…. Read more »

More Than 50,000 CUNY Students and Recent Grads Will Have Their Debt Wiped Clean

July 30, 2021 By Allie Griffin The City University of New York (CUNY) will wipe out the debt of 50,000 current students and recent grads who experienced hardships during the pandemic. CUNY will erase as much as $125 million outstanding tuition and fee balances through the “CUNY Comeback Program,” CUNY Chancellor Félix Matos Rodríguez and… Read more »

Police Arrest Creep Who Threatened to Rape 11-Year-Old in Jackson Heights Alleyway

July 30, 2021 By Allie Griffin Police have nabbed the creep who dragged an 11-year-old girl into an alleyway Sunday and threatened to rape and murder her. Officers arrested 34-year-old Jonathan Perez, of Woodhaven, Thursday on charges of robbery, assault, kidnapping, acting in a manner injurious to a child less than 17, and menacing. Perez… Read more »

CDC Recommends That Queens Residents Should Wear Masks Indoors

July 29, 2021 By Allie Griffin The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has determined that Queens residents, even those fully vaccinated, should wear masks indoors as COVID-19 cases are rising in the borough. The CDC issued a recommendation Tuesday that residents in more than 2,100 counties across the country — including Queens —… Read more »