A South Ozone Park man was arraigned Thursday, Feb. 16, on charges of attempted murder and other crimes after he allegedly blasted away at a deli owner with a handgun and then an assault rifle earlier in the day.
Donnie Hudson, 35, of Rockaway Boulevard, was arraigned before Queens Criminal Court Judge Jerry Iannece on a complaint charging him with attempted murder, assault and a slew of weapon possession charges, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced Feb. 17.
According to the charges, at around 2:30 p.m. on Feb. 15, Hudson entered the Rockaway Express deli at 114-02 Rockaway Blvd. and confronted store owner Fahmi Kaid, 47, who was working behind the counter. Hudson was captured on a security camera as he pointed a .40 caliber handgun at Kaid and fired off three rounds, striking Kaid once in the head.
Hudson stormed out of the store and returned moments later brandishing an assault rifle, which he proceeded to fire at Kaid several times as he lay stricken on the floor behind the counter.
Hudson ran from the crime scene. Kaid sustained a grazed gunshot wound to his head, a gunshot wound to his wrist, an injury to his radial artery, and he suffered a volar laceration that will require surgery to repair, according to the DA. EMS transported Kaid to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center where he was treated for his wounds and listed in stable condition.
Hudson was arrested just before 7 p.m. a few blocks away from the deli at 114th Street near 135th Avenue. Officers recovered a .40 caliber Smith and Wesson pistol with an empty magazine and two loose .223 caliber rounds from inside Hudson’s sweatshirt. Officers also recovered an American Tactical AR-15 semi-automatic assault weapon with one round in its chamber, as well as a magazine containing 85 .223 caliber rounds, a magazine containing 44 .223 caliber rounds, a magazine continuing 18 .223 caliber rounds, and four loose .223 caliber rounds from inside Hudson’s backpack.
“This was a brutal, calculated assault using battlefield weaponry,” Katz said. “Under absolutely no circumstances are we going to stand for turning our communities into war zones. Given the firepower deployed in this violent attack, we asked for the defendant to be remanded into custody. Thankfully, the judge agreed.”
Judge Iannece ordered Hudson held without bail with a return date on Feb. 21. If convicted, Hudson faces up to 25 years in prison.