A 41-year-old man was charged on Wednesday in connection with the fatal shooting in Queens of Police Officer Jonathan Diller two days ago.
The man, Lindy Jones, 41, was sitting in the driver’s seat of a car that Officer Diller was inspecting when he was shot and killed. A man in the passenger seat, Guy Rivera, 34, fired the fatal shot through the passenger-side window, the authorities said. Mr. Rivera has not been charged.
Mr. Jones faces three gun charges, including possessing and defacing a weapon, according to the police. Court records show that Mr. Jones pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to all charges. His lawyer, Michael C. Anastasiou, could not immediately be reached for comment.
Mr. Jones and Mr. Rivera were illegally parked at a bus stop in the Far Rockaway neighborhood on Monday evening when Officer Diller and his partner approached the car and asked Mr. Rivera repeatedly to step out. He did not comply, and Officer Diller yelled at him to take his hands out of his pockets. Mr. Rivera then pulled out a gun and shot Officer Diller in the torso, just under his bulletproof vest. The officer was pronounced dead at Jamaica Hospital later that night.
Officer Diller’s partner, Officer Veckash Khedna, returned fire and shot Mr. Rivera in the back. Mr. Rivera was also taken to Jamaica Hospital, where he underwent surgery and is expected to survive.
Mr. Rivera has 21 prior arrests, according to the police and State Corrections Department records, including on charges of first-degree robbery and attempted assault.
Mr. Jones was arrested on a gun charge last year, the police said. That arrest came after he spent seven years in prison for first-degree robbery and attempted murder, according to Corrections Department records.
“Less than a year, gun charge, he’s back on the streets,” Mayor Eric Adams said at a news conference on Monday. “Same bad people doing bad things to good people.”
Chelsia Rose Marcius contributed reporting.
