A third teen was arrested and charged in connection to the fatal stabbing of 14-year-old Julian Cornell at a McDonald’s restaurant in Sunnyside last month. Photo via Google Maps
March 28, 2025 By Bill Parry
A third teenager was arrested and charged in connection with the Valentine’s Day fatal stabbing of a 14-year-old South Jamaica boy at a McDonald’s restaurant in Sunnyside last month.
A 17-year-old Bronx boy was apprehended on Tuesday, March 25, after he was indicted by a Queens grand jury on charges of gang assault in the first degree and other crimes for taking part in an afterschool brawl that resulted in the murder of Julian Corniell on Feb. 14.
The fight stemmed from a prior dispute between two groups of teens. The 16-year-old co-defendant allegedly responsible for the murder was charged with murder and other crimes earlier this month. The 17-year-old defendant from the Bronx was arraigned in Queens Supreme Court on Tuesday and is being held without bail.
“Julian Corniell, who was just 14, was brutally assaulted in broad daylight by at least two attackers who are teens themselves,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said on Wednesday.
According to the charges, on Feb. 14, at approximately 3:25 p.m., teenagers who attend different high schools gathered at the McDonald’s restaurant located at 38-02 Queens Blvd. A fight broke out between two rival groups of teens and was captured on video surveillance. During the brawl, the 17-year-old defendant is alleged to have joined the group assaulting Corniell by hitting the victim and others with a cane. Corniell was then stabbed in the torso by the 16-year-old co-defendant.
The wounded 14-year-old fled the McDonald’s and made it across Queens Boulevard where he collapsed on the street. Police from the 108th Precinct in Long Island City responded to a 911 call of a male stabbed at the location and found Corniell unconscious and unresponsive. A bloody knife was recovered nearby. EMS responded to the crime scene and rushed Corniell to New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, where he succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead a short while later.
“Tragically, he died from his injuries shortly afterward,” Katz said. “This 17-year-old is now facing indictment charges of gang assault while another is facing murder charges. Both remain in custody as we seek justice in this case.”
Queens Supreme Court Justice Karen Gopee remanded the 17-year-old into custody without bail and ordered him to return to court on March 31. If convicted of the top count, he faces 25 years in prison.
Police arrested a 14-year-old boy hours after the murder and charged him with gang assault in the first degree. His case is being handled in Family Court, according to the Queens DA’s office.
