Six defendants in court for attacking Long Island City police officers last month: prosecutor

July 10, 2024 By Bill Parry

A grand jury in Queens has indicted six people on attempted gang assault and related offenses for attacking police officers who were checking on the welfare of three unsupervised children riding bicycles outside a Long Island City hotel before dawn last month.

Police officers from the 114th Precinct in Astoria saw the children riding bicycles around 4:20 a.m. on June 17. They were conducting a security check when they were attacked by the six adults outside the Wingate by Wyndham hotel at 38-70 12th Street, which was converted into a migrant shelter in February 2023.

The Wingate by Wyndham hotel on 12th Street in Long Island City was converted into a migrant shelter in February 2023. Photo via Google Maps

Juan Munoz, 25, Alejandro Munoz, 42, and Karina Navarro-Chavez, 42, all of 10th Street in Long Island City; Miguel Chiluisa, 23, of Roosevelt Avenue in Corona; Cristian Taipe, 30, of 36th Avenue in Astoria; and Natali Iza, 27, whose address is unknown, were arraigned on charges of attempted assault and attempted gang activity, endangering the welfare of a child and rioting.

According to the prosecution, the officers followed the children and approached the defendants, who were standing nearby. Iza began yelling at them while pushing and hitting one of the officers while the other adults surrounded him.

Chiluisa is said to have picked up a child’s bicycle and thrown it at a police officer, hitting him in the body, while Navarro-Chavez is said to have hit the police officer on the back of the head with an unknown object.

Iza struck another officer with a child’s bicycle while the group began punching, shoving and kicking the officers. Chiluisa then ran across the street in handcuffs and fled in an unknown direction.

Chiluisa was observed and arrested by another officer at the 21st Street-Queensbridge subway station at approximately 5:16 a.m. The defendant had a broken handcuff on one of his hands.

The injured officers were taken to New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, where their condition was listed as stable.

“Two police officers checking on the welfare of unsupervised children at 4:20 a.m. were allegedly surrounded and punched and kicked by a group of adults outside a Long Island City hotel,” said Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz. “My office will vigorously prosecute those who harm members of the police force, and we will hold these defendants accountable for their alleged actions.”

Chiluisa is also accused of fleeing, and both he and Iza are also accused of illegal possession of weapons. If convicted on this count, the defendants face up to 15 years in prison. They have been ordered to appear in court on August 13.

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