Latest news with #BrooklynFederalCourt
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Brooklyn man who supplied drugs that killed transgender activist Cecilia Gentili gets 19 years
A convicted felon who supplied the dose of fentanyl-laced heroin that killed transgender activist Cecilia Gentili will spend the next 19 years in prison, a federal judge in Brooklyn ruled Tuesday. Michael Kulian, 45, provided the drugs to Gentili's dealer and friend, Antonio Venti, and on Feb. 6, the 52-year-old activist and author died of the combined effects of fentanyl, heroin, xylazine and cocaine after Venti sold her the deadly 'bundle,' according to prosecutors. When law enforcement searched Kulian's Brooklyn home, which he shared with his elderly grandmother, they found 850 glassine envelopes containing a total 32.264 grams of fentanyl, as well as a digital scale, a .45 caliber handgun and ammo. On Tuesday, Judge Brian Cogan told Kulian that the 19-year sentence would send a message of deterrence, and ordered him remanded to start serving his time. Kuilan pleaded guilty in September to federal drug distribution and gun possession charges in Brooklyn Federal Court for his role in Gentili's death. Venti took a plea deal on July 18, 2024. Cogan sentenced him to five years behind bars in March. 'Gentili's death represents the loss of an outspoken advocate on behalf of a marginalized community. But her death is one of tens of thousands of such tragedies across this country,' Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Amir wrote in a March 4 letter to the judge, pointing out that fentanyl or other synthetic opioids caused more than 81,000 overdose deaths in 2023. 'The defendant is not individually responsible for the magnitude of this crisis, but he is accountable for his choice to help perpetuate it — and the seriousness of the crisis thus warrants commensurately serious punishment,' he wrote. As part of their deals, both men admitted that their product caused Gentili's death. 'Cecilia Gentili was tragically poisoned from fentanyl-laced heroin. Today, the perpetrators who sold the deadly drugs to Gentili are being held accountable,' Brooklyn U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella said Tuesday. 'This office will be relentless in prosecuting fentanyl dealers.' Prosecutors were recommending roughly 22 to 27 years behind bars. Gentili founded Trans Equity Consulting, a New York City-based firm that offers guidance to the LGBTQ community and has a health care clinic at Callen Lorde, a center for LGBTQ+ healthcare. Previously, she was director of policy at Gay Men's Health Crisis. She also lobbied for the passage of the New York State Gender Expression and Discrimination Act, which became law in 2019, and was an actress on the television show 'Pose.' Her Feb. 15 funeral at Manhattan's venerable St. Patrick's Cathedral drew backlash and was denounced by Cardinal Timothy Dolan, who decried the 'the irreverence and the disrespect' of the mourners and requested a rare Mass of Reparation to pray for forgiveness. Gentili's family called the Church's reaction 'sanctimonious' and said the funeral brought 'precious life and radical joy to the Cathedral in historic defiance of the Church's hypocrisy and anti-trans hatred.'
Yahoo
25-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
U.S. citizen tried to torch U.S. embassy in Tel Aviv, threatened to kill Trump: feds
A U.S. citizen staying in Israel threatened to kill President Trump and tried to torch the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv, showing up with a backpack full of Molotov cocktails, Brooklyn federal prosecutors said Sunday. Joseph Neumeyer, 28, wrote threats on his Facebook wall for months, posting messages like, 'We are killing Trump and Musk now,' 'Death to Trump. Death to America,' and 'The former President has several hours to resign or certain death,' according to federal prosecutors. On May 19, he posted a call to arms — 'Join me this afternoon in Tel Aviv- we are burning down the U.S. embassy' and 'Join me as I burn down the embassy in Tel Aviv. Death to America, death to Americans, and f— the west,' according to the feds. Neumeyer showed up at the embassy later that day but a guard intercepted him abut two meters away from an employee entrance, prosecutors say. The guard tapped on his shoulder as he passed, according to the feds, and Neumeyer said 'f– you' in English several times and spat on the guard, then tried to flee. The guard grabbed his backpack to stop him but Neumeyer broke free, dropped the backpack and ran off, according to a criminal complaint. Embassy guards found three Molotov cocktails in the backpack, according to the complaint. Israeli law enforcement tracked him to a hotel five blocks away, arresting him in his hotel room. He admitted he assaulted the guard and that his backpack had 'Molotov cocktail bottles' with vodka inside, prosecutors say. Israel deported Neumeyer to the U.S. Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn are handling his case because he landed at JFK Airport, which is in the Eastern District of New York. He's charged with attempting to use fire or an explosive to destroy U.S. property, a federal charge that carries a five-to-20-year prison term. Brooklyn Federal Court Magistrate Judge Peggy Kuo ordered him held without bail. 'This defendant is charged with planning a devastating attack targeting our embassy in Israel, threatening death to Americans, and President Trump's life,' Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a statement Sunday. 'The Department will not tolerate such violence and will prosecute this defendant to the fullest extent of the law.' According to the feds, Neumeyer is a dual U.S. and German citizen who was born in Colorado and lived in the U.S. until earlier this year. He left the U.S. for Canada on Feb. 7 and arrived in Israel April 23. Neumeyer's Facebook page includes conspiracy theories and posts praising Israel and Russia, as well as several posts urging people to vote for Israeli singer Yuval Raphael in this year's Eurovision competition. Rapheal, a survivor of the Oct. 7 Hamas massacre at the Nova music festival, won second place, amid cries of protest calling for Israel to be barred from the competition over the Israeli bombing campaign and ground invasion in Gaza, In a post from May 19, Neumeyer wrote, 'When America overthrew the Ukrainian government through far-right brigades, they began to unravel and colonize Europe. American media is not reflective of the truth. The English placed Obama and Trump in office, they are in total control of the US navy communication structure. Our elections are a sham.' On his personal website, Neumeyer describes himself as 'an acclaimed leader, geo-strategist, and academic recognized for his work and advocacy across The Commonwealth, European Union, and world — in both infrastructure, mercantile banking, and entrepreneurship.' His lawyer did not immediately return a message seeking comment Sunday.
Yahoo
26-04-2025
- Yahoo
Brooklyn subway mass shooting victims sue Glock over rampage, arguing gunmaker is at fault
Frank James' terrifying April 2022 mass shooting on a crowded Brooklyn subway was a 'direct' result of gunmaker Glock's marketing, two victims claim in a lawsuit. Furong Hu and Zhuoxuan Ye were among the 10 people shot on a Manhattan-bound N train when when James, 62, opened fire with his legally purchased Glock 17 9mm handgun, they said in a Brooklyn Federal Court lawsuit against the gunmaker. James, who unleashed 33 shots as the train traveled through Sunset Park between the 59th and 36th Street stations, was sentenced in October 2023 to life in prison for the horrifying incident, which left another 19 people hurt. The Brooklyn man had recorded videos of himself ranting on YouTube about a race war, railed against the city's mental health system and the homeless on the subway. Austria-based Glock has endangered the public with its marketing strategy, including failing to 'stop the glorification of Glock' as the weapon of choice in rap lyrics, and in movies and TV, the lawsuit argues. Glock also emphasizes the weapon's high capacity and 'ease of concealment,' factors which 'appeal to prospective purchasers with criminal intent,' Hu and Ye said in court papers. The company also intentionally makes more firearms 'than the legitimate market could bear' in order to create an illegal secondary market; and has refused to terminate contracts with distributors who sold to dealers 'with disproportionately high volumes of guns traced to crime scenes,' the pair alleged. 'As a consequence selling Glock firearms to the civilian market, individuals unfit to operate these weapons gain access to them,' the victims said in the lawsuit. Dealers are also not trained to avoid straw sales, a transaction in which someone buys a gun for another person, according to the lawsuit. It's the second time victims of James' mass shooting targeted Glock in court. Brooklyn resident Ilene Steur, 49, sued the gunmaker in 2022 for its marketing, claiming the company knows it's product is 'unsuited to personal defense or recreation, [and] enables an individual in possession of the weapon to inflict unparalleled civilian carnage.'
New York Post
26-04-2025
- New York Post
Brooklyn subway shooting was 'direct' result of Glock marketing: Lawsuit
Frank James' terrifying April 2022 mass shooting on a crowded Brooklyn subway was a 'direct' result of gunmaker Glock's marketing, two victims claim in a lawsuit. Furong Hu and Zhuoxuan Ye were among the 10 people shot on a Manhattan-bound N tain when when James, 62, opened fire with his legally purchased Glock 17 9mm handgun, they said in a Brooklyn Federal Court lawsuit against the gunmaker. James, who unleashed 33 shots as the train traveled through Sunset Park between the 59th and 36th Street stations, was sentenced in October 2023 to life in prison for the horrifying incident, which left another 19 people hurt. Advertisement 3 Frank James was sentenced to life in prison for the April 2022 mass shooting on a subway in Brooklyn. Matthew McDermott The Brooklyn man had recorded videos of himself ranting on YouTube about a race war, railed against the city's mental health system and the homeless on the subway. Austria-based Glock has endangered the public with its marketing strategy, including failing to 'stop the glorification of Glock' as the weapon of choice in rap lyrics, and in movies and TV, the lawsuit argues. Advertisement Glock also emphasizes the weapon's high capacity and 'ease of concealment,' factors which 'appeal to prospective purchasers with criminal intent,' Hu and Ye said in court papers. 3 James used a legally purchased Glock when he opened fire on the N train, authorities said. DOJ The company also intentionally makes more firearms 'than the legitimate market could bear' in order to create an illegal secondary market; and has refused to terminate contracts with distributors who sold to dealers 'with disproportionately high volumes of guns traced to crime scenes,' the pair alleged. 'As a consequence selling Glock firearms to the civilian market, individuals unfit to operate these weapons gain access to them,' the victims said in the lawsuit. Dealers are also not trained to avoid straw sales, a transaction in which someone buys a gun for another person, according to the lawsuit. Advertisement It's the second time victims of James' mass shooting targeted Glock in court. Brooklyn resident Ilene Steur, 49, sued the gunmaker in 2022 for its marketing, claiming the company knows it's product is 'unsuited to personal defense or recreation, [and] enables an individual in possession of the weapon to inflict unparalleled civilian carnage.'
Yahoo
21-04-2025
- Yahoo
It's back to prison for violent Staten Island ex-con with federal conviction in robbery spree
An ex-con from Staten Island was found guilty of committing a string of terrifying heists — including one where he posed as an FBI agent, and another where an accomplice blasted a hole in the coat of the victim's 10-year-old son. Tony Clanton, 51, has a record of violent crime dating back to 1997, when he ripped off an undercover Special Deputy U.S. Marshal during a staged gun buy, then tried to shoot that marshal, but the gun wouldn't fire. On Monday, a Brooklyn Federal Court jury delivered a verdict that could end his criminal career for good — guilty on five federal robbery and related charges, which carry a mandatory minimum of 25 years and a maximum of life behind bars. Clanton served about three years for the 1997 caper, as well as an 11-year sentence for a string of home invasion robberies in 2007 and 2008 where he flashed a fake DEA badge and phony warrants. He returned to the criminal life with a fresh wave of stickups in 2023, teaming up with another ex-con, Lawrence Dotson, who spent more than 26 years behind bars for murder. Dotson, who's cooperating with the feds, took the stand against Clanton at his trial. 'Over a six-month period, Clanton directed a cruel and violent spree in New York City and New Jersey that left terrorized robbery victims in his wake, including two children who watched as their parents were shot at or menaced with guns,' U.S. Attorney John Durham said. The spree started on Jan. 20, 2023, when Clanton targeted a fellow worker in the construction business, Vernon Fields. Fields and Clanton had similar jobs, finding and recruiting day laborers to work on big construction sites, and about a year before the robbery, the two men's companies had a dispute over a competing bid, Fields testified. That day, Fields was coming home with his 10-year-old son on Clinton Ave. on Staten Island when Dotson, disguised as a painter in a white Tyvek suit pulled out a loaded silver revolver and told him, 'Don't make it a homicide.' Dotson pistol-whipped Fields and fired a shot near his head, and Clanton rushed in to grab the vicitm's keys and get into the apartment — but the two men fled in a U-Haul van after they realized Fields was on the phone with his girlfriend, firing again as they ran. 'I just kept saying, you know, just don't shoot my son. I just kept repeating that,' Fields told the jury. Clanton also orchestrated a $4,000 stick-up of a smoke shop in Staten Island's Annadale neighborhood on June 3, 2023. The owner testified that the robbers bound him with zip-ties, taking both the cash and a stash of pot. On June 24, 2023, Clanton and Dotson pretended to sell a Mercedes Benz for $60,000 to a man Dotson met in a strip club, according to prosecutors, then drove to the prospective buyer's Staten Island house and tried to rob the man in front of his teenage son. Three days later, he and his accomplices donned fake 'FBI' clothes, including a novelty jacket he ordered through Amazon, and tried to rob the husband-and-wife owners of an Edison, N.J., jewelry store. And on July 12, 2023,, he took part in armed robbery of a Brooklyn ice cream shop owner, who was robbed at gunpoint after walking out of a bank with $6,000 cash. Clanton's lawyer, Susan Kellman, tried to paint Dotson as an opportunistic liar, and questioned in her closing arguments why he the government let him keep the Mercedes he used in the crimes. She declined comment Monday. Clanton is slated to be sentenced on July 31.
