What’s News, Breaking: Thursday, February 23, 2023

February 23, 2023 Brooklyn Eagle Staff

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KOSCIUSZKO BRIDGE WILL LIGHT UP IN SOLIDARITY WITH UKRAINE

GREENPOINT — The Kosciuszko Bridge, which bridges northern Brooklyn and Queens over the Newtown Creek, will be one of 13 New York state buildings and structures lit blue and yellow on Friday night, Feb. 24, to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Governor Kathy Hochul has directed that the Empire State Building and other New York landmarks be lit in support of the people of Ukraine, but the Kosciuszko Bridge is the only one in Brooklyn this time around. Last year after hostilities broke out, Gov. Hochul launched a website with resources for Ukrainians and how New Yorkers can help.

Greenpoint, the neighborhood closest to the Kosciuszko Bridge, is home to people of Ukrainian descent as well as the Polish community, which has raised thousands of dollars in the past year to help Ukrainian refugees entering New York City.

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DAUGHTER-IN-LAW OF LONGTIME BROOKLYN STATE WORKER CHARGED WITH SOCIAL SECURITY FRAUD

NATIONAL — A Georgia resident has been arrested allegedly stealing over $450,000 in New York state pension and Social Security payments made to her deceased mother-in-law, a longtime Brooklyn resident, over a 16-year period. Making the announcement on Thursday, Feb. 23, State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli, the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia Ryan K. Buchanan and the Inspector General for the Social Security Administration Gail S. Ennis said that the decedent, Minnie Smith, was a longtime Brooklyn resident employed with the Insurance Fund from 1985 until her 2005 retirement in 2005. She died about a year after retiring and moving to Georgia to be closer to family.

Defendant Sandra Smith was her mother-in-law’s caretaker and handled her finances. The family did not notify the New York State and Local Retirement System or the SSA of her death and the retirement system received only a change of address form purportedly signed and dated by “Minnie Smith.”

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OZY MEDIA FOUNDER CHARGED IN BROOKLYN COURT WITH FRAUD AND ID THEFT

DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN — Ozy Media founder Carlos Watson was arrested Thursday morning, Feb. 23, on charges of having allegedly defrauded investors of tens of millions of dollars through fraudulent misrepresentations and impersonated media company executives during negotiations. Watson, along with senior executives at the California-based media and entertainment company, stand accused of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud; Watson is additionally charged with aggravated identity theft for his alleged role in the impersonation of multiple media company executives in communications with Ozy’s lenders and prospective investors in furtherance of the fraud schemes.

Arraigned Thursday before United States Magistrate Judge Cheryl L. Pollak in Brooklyn federal court, Watson faces a mandatory minimum sentence of two years’ imprisonment and a maximum sentence of 37 years’ imprisonment if convicted.

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CORRECTION: REPORTING FROM OUTLET MISREPRESENTED COVID WASTE

On Thursday, Feb. 23, a story ran in the print edition of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle indicating that the city government auctioned off $200 million worth of COVID gear for just $500,000. The Eagle picked up this story from THE CITY, a local news consortium. The Department of Citywide Administrative Services issued a statement on Feb. 23 indicating that the reporter from THE CITY did not wait for the final estimates on exactly how much the COVID equipment was worth: $42,421,625 – just 18.9% of the figure that the reporter claimed, according to the NYCDCAS.

The Brooklyn Daily Eagle had not assigned a reporter to the task of estimating the breakdown of COVID-era waste and budget gaps. For more COVID news, read us online at www.brooklyneagle.com.

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UPGRADED SUBWAY STATIONS WILL OPEN LATER THIS YEAR

WILLIAMSBURG TO SUNSET PARK — Also as part of the MTA’s 2020-2024 Capital Program, 12 new stations, including some in Brooklyn that are already undergoing upgrades will open this year.

Stations at which construction contract awards were already made include the Lorimer St. and Grand St. L train stops in Williamsburg, the Metropolitan Ave. G train stop, the 7th Ave. stop in Park Slope on the F and G lines, and the southbound track of the 8th Ave. N train in Sunset Park near Bensonhurst.

“We are determined to make the NYC Transit system fully accessible, not just for persons with disabilities, but also for seniors, for parents with children who are in strollers and travelers with luggage,” said MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber.

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MTA WILL AWARD CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS FOR SUBWAY ELEVATOR UPGRADES

BOROUGHWIDE — Several Brooklyn subway stops in Brooklyn, ranging from Greenpoint to Sunset Park and East New York, will get new elevators as part of the MTA’s commitment to making the NYC Subway 95% accessible. The MTA has scheduled 17 stations through the system for contract awards during 2023, as part of the 2020-2024 Capital Program, funded with $5.2 billion and considered the most ambitious accessibility program in the transit agency’s history.

The Brooklyn stations slated for contract awards are New Lots Ave. (IRT, # 3 train); the Classon Ave. G train stop, the Sunset Park 36th St. D, N and R station and three Broadway Junction stations covering the A & C trains, the L train and the J and Z trains.

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SEVERAL BROOKLYN JUDGES SUPPORT #RIGHT2REMAINSILENT ACT FOR JUVENILES

STATEWIDE — The Legal Aid Society hailed 17 sitting and former judges law enforcement officials and child advocates — including several from Brooklyn — for their support of the #Right2RemainSilent Act, that would codify juvenile New Yorkers’ right to counsel before a custodial police interrogation. This bill would modify the Family Court Act and Criminal Procedure Law to ensure that any child under age 18 consult with a lawyer before being subjected to custodial interrogation by law enforcement, and would require the police to notify a parent before taking a child into custody at a precinct.

Brooklyn jurists and law enforcement officials declaring written support include current sitting Kings County Civil Court Judge Sandra E. Roper; current Judicial Hearing Officer Susan S. Danoff for the Family Court on Jay St. in Downtown Brooklyn; retired State Family Court Judge Paul H. Grosvenor who is still Brooklyn-based; and retired Kings County Family Court Judge Emily Olshansky.

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CONEY TEENS INDICTED FOR MURDER, ASSAULT IN STABBING DEATH

CONEY ISLAND — Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez on Wednesday announced that three teenagers have been arraigned on an indictment in which they are variously charged with murder, manslaughter and gang assault for allegedly fatally attacking a 17-year-old boy in Coney Island in an after-school assault stemming from a dispute over a girl. Gonzalez said that, according to the investigation, on the afternoon of Jan. 20, the victim, Nyheem Wright, 17, was in front of a strip mall located at 3001 Mermaid Avenue with his twin brother when he was allegedly surrounded by the defendants and a fight ensued, in which the two older defendants allegedly kicked and punched Nyheem about the head and body and the youngest defendant allegedly charged at the victim and stabbed him in the torso.

The three defendants, aged 13, 14 and 15, turned themselves in to authorities two days after the incident; Wright was rushed to the hospital by EMS but was unable to be saved.

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MAYOR FIRES BACK AT DESANTIS AFTER TWITTER BEEF

CITYWIDE — Mayor Adams on Wednesday responded to Florida governor Ron DeSantis’s Monday criticisms of NYC on WABC’s “Sid and Friends in the Morning” show, citing Florida’s higher murder rate as a defense against accusations that NYC has a crime problem. DeSantis had traveled to the city earlier this week to give a speech at a law enforcement conference in Staten Island, prompting Adams to issue a frosty Tweet referencing DeSantis’ controversial conservative social policies and offering to “teach [him] something about values.”

“When you look at Florida per 100,000 residents, they have 7.3 murders per 100,000 residents in ’21, and ours was with 5.5 per 100,000. So when you rail about something about New York crime is an issue, the numbers just don’t add up in comparison to Florida,” Adams said.

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STOLEN ARTIFACTS RETURNED TO YEMEN

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York — along with the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of State and the Smithsonian Institution — on Tuesday participated in a milestone repatriation ceremony returning ownership of 77 pieces of stolen cultural property seized by U.S. law enforcement officials to Yemen’s government. The antiquities included 64 relief carved stone heads forfeited to the U.S. by convicted antiquities smuggler and Brooklyn resident Mousa Khouli, 11 Qur’an manuscript pages, a bronze inscribed bowl and a funerary stele from Ma’în or Minaean tribal cultures in the highlands of northwest Yemen dating back to the 1st century BCE; the pieces will be housed at the Smithsonian until full repatriation is possible.

“On behalf of the Government of Yemen, I express my deep gratitude to the US Government… for all efforts exerted in the retrieval and return of these Yemeni artifacts. Ever since the Houthis’ coup in Yemen, our heritage and history have been under attack. The Embassy of Yemen will continue its close engagement with the U.S. Government in pursuit of the restitution of Yemen’s stolen cultural heritage and property,” said Yemen’s ambassador Mohammed Al-Hadhrami in a press statement.

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WILLIAMSBURG WINTER WINE & DINE HEATS UP GRAND STREET

WILLIAMSBURG — The Grand Street BID is hosting its annual Winter Wine & Dine this week until March 6, featuring 11 local restaurants and six bars offering prix-fixe dinners from $23 and drink specials in celebration of local cuisine. “Wine and Dine has historically brought hundreds of additional diners to participating restaurants during some of the slowest weeks of the season,” wrote the BID in a press release, describing the event as a more affordable neighborhood alternative to NYC’s Restaurant Week.

Information about participating restaurants and menus can be found on the Grand Street BID’s website; the group is also holding a contest where diners who share photos of their meals on social media with the hashtag #DineonGrand have a chance to win a $50 gift certificate to the restaurant of their choice.

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RED HOOK LIBRARY TO CLOSE FOR TWO YEARS

RED HOOK — Red Hook’s branch of the Brooklyn Public Library is set to close next month on March 17 for renovations, reports the Brooklyn Paper, and will remain shuttered into 2025. Planned upgrades include not only cosmetic fixes, but also flood protection features, extra space for patrons, a new reading/activity room for kids, a landscaped outdoor area and a dedicated area for teens.

The library says that the renovations have been necessary ever since it sustained significant damage during Superstorm Sandy in 2012, and that it is seeking to partner with neighborhood organizations to ensure area residents still have access to books and programs during the shutdown period.

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GOLDMAN, MALLIOTAKIS: HELP GET FUNERAL VISA FOR TRUCK VICTIM’S MOTHER

BROOKLYN — U.S. Reps. Dan Goldman and Nicole Malliotakis on Tuesday announced that, along with Rep. Grace Meng of Queens, they are seeking to help secure a visa for the mother of YiJie Ye, the single father who was struck and killed by a U-Haul truck that plowed through the streets of Brooklyn last week. The three congressmembers will be working with the U.S. Embassy in Guangzhou, China to help obtain the visa for ShuiYing Jiang, so that she can travel to New York from her home in Fuzhoui, China to help plan and attend her son’s funeral, and be with Ye’s three children, her grandchildren, at this difficult time.

The 44-year-old was the only fatal casualty of the shocking attack, carried out by 62-year-old Weng Sor, who was reportedly undergoing a mental health episode and told authorities that he believed it was “judgment day.”

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FAMILY SEARCHES FOR MISSING WILLIAMSBURG PASTOR

Have you seen this man? Don’t hesitate to reach out to authorities with any information you can share.

WILLIAMSBURG — A Williamsburg family is asking the public to help find pastor Guarionex Santos Lebron, 58, reports News 12, who has not been seen since leaving his home on the morning of Feb. 11. The pastor is believed to have traveled to Queens to preach, but never arrived at his church, with his last known location coming from a cellphone ping near the 7 train in Queens.

Anyone with information in regard to this incident is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782); or, log onto the Crime Stoppers website or to Tweet @NYPDTips.

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BROOKLYN COMMUNITY BOARD APPLICATION DEADLINES EXTENDED

BROOKLYN — Applications for Brooklyn’s community boards are due by Feb. 23, following an initial extension from Feb. 14. Board members serve two-year terms and are appointed by borough presidents; all applicants must live, work or have some compelling interest in the district whose board they seek to join, such as attending school there or being a board member of an organization based there.

Interested? The official application form can be found online; or consult THE CITY’s step-by-step guide to applying for more detailed information.

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‘MAKE IT IN BROOKLYN’ FEMALE FOUNDERS PITCH CONTEST

DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN — Brooklyn is home to more female-founded startups than any other city in the U.S. declares the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership, which is inviting women business owners to participate in the Make it In Brooklyn Female Founders Pitch Contest. Women entrepreneurs may apply for one of the 5 spots to showcase their companies as a top selection of NYC’s female-led startups, and a chance to win $5,000, community support, media coverage and visibility.

Contest finalists will be pitching to expert judges including Shivika Arora, Product Manager at JP Morgan Chase; Faye Penn, executive vice president, NYC Economic Development Corp.; Eastin Rossell, venture associate at HearstLab; and Adriana Samaniego, principal of the Female Founders Fund.

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TWO BROOKLYN CONGRESSIONAL LEADERS WILL BE HONORED

BROWNSVILLE — House Democratic Leader, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-8) and Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-9) will be honored this Friday at a Black History Month Award Ceremony and Reception with Caribbean Americans Globally United, Inc. CAGU will honor Rep. Jeffries, the first person of color to be elected leader of a party in Congress and Yvette D. Clarke, on her election as First Vice Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus. The public is invited to this event, taking place at Bethesda Healing House in Brownsville.

CAGU is a coalition of Caribbean American leaders in Brooklyn that advocates for the interests and empowerment of Caribbean Americans in New York and throughout the United States.

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MAIMONIDES HEALTH RECEIVES $1.65M GRANT FOR ITS COMMUNITY CARE OF BROOKLYN NAVIGATOR PROGRAM

BOROUGH PARK — Thanks to bipartisan Congressional teamwork, Maimonides Health has received a federal grant that will dramatically scale up the Community Care of Brooklyn Navigator program, a centralized virtual center that connects Brooklynites to a network of community-based organizations that provide medical, behavioral health, and social services. U.S. Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, and U.S. Representatives Nicole Malliotakis (D-11/southwestern Brooklyn) and Jerrold Nadler (D-Manhattan) secured $1.65 million in funds that will enable the CCB Navigator program to serve up to 7,000 patients, an exponential increase from just over 200 during its 2022 soft launch.

This grant, considered vital to expanding the CCB Brooklyn at this safety-net hospital, will support workforce development programs to hire and train additional care navigators; provide the IT infrastructure needed to increase referrals for up to 25 times more patients; and deliver those referrals and care coordination for up to 7,000 patients each year.

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AMERICAN BOARD OF EMERGENCY MEDICINE WELCOMES MAIMONIDES ER CHAIR

BOROUGH PARK/MIDWOOD — John Marshall, MD, Chair of Emergency Medicine at Maimonides Medical Center, has been elected to the American Board of Emergency Medicine’s Board of Directors. An Air Force veteran who served in Afghanistan providing critical care transport, Dr. Marshall has expanded Maimonides Medical Center’s academic and educational offerings since joining the organization in 2003, and has led the development of seven Emergency Medicine fellowship programs and a state-of-the art Simulation Center,

Dr. Marshall, who also leads the Emergency Medicine department at Maimonides Midwood Community Hospital and the soon-to-open Maimonides Bay Ridge Emergency Department, has published extensively on emergency medicine, and is an editor of the textbook, “Critical Care Emergency Medicine.”

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STARBUCKS URGED TO CONDUCT WORKERS’ RIGHTS PROBE

CITYWIDE — Starbucks shareholders are being urged to vote for the company to conduct an independent workers’ rights assessment, after the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has issued dozens of complaints against Starbucks, according to a letter that City Comptroller Brad Lander and a coalition of investors sent to the beverage company. Lander and the investors coalition are concerned about Starbucks’ reported interference with worker organizing, and that such behavior may create reputational, legal and operational risks for the company and impact long-term value.

The letter requests that the board commission and oversee a third-party assessment of management’s adherence to Starbucks’ stated commitments to workers’ rights to freedom of association and collective bargaining. It also requests that the assessment address management non-interference and take steps to remedy any practices found to be inconsistent with Starbucks’ stated commitments.

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CITY COMPTROLLER WILL AUDIT NYCHA REPAIRS AND EVICTION RATES

CITYWIDE — Residents of New York City Housing Authority developments and City Comptroller Brad Lander have prioritized two audits: The Comptroller’s Bureau of Audit will review both the New York City Housing Authority’s repair process and the eviction rates at RAD/PACT developments. The repair process audit will analyze how NYCHA selects contractors hired to conduct repair work, the quality of work performed, and the thoroughness of evaluations. For example, the problem of closed tickets for incomplete repairs arose often.

Previous reviews that the City Comptroller’s Office found that a quick response field review of building entry doors at NYCHA developments found that nearly 60% of residential building entrance doors were open and/or had broken locks — a dramatic increase from 23.5% in a similar field review conducted in 2018.

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D LINE TRACKWORK WILL CLOSE ADJACENT STREETS

BENSONHURST — The MTA will be doing main line track and switch replacement along the D subway line in Bensonhurst, requiring the closure of several streets as well, on four consecutive weekends through March 19. Brooklyn Community Board 11, which serves the neighborhoods of Bensonhurst, Bath Beach, Mapleton and Gravesend, reports that beginning this Friday, Feb. 24, and ending on Sunday, March 19, scheduled working hours will be 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Fridays for preparatory work which includes the staging of street cranes, track panels, and other related materials; and 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays, for track removal and installation.

Affected roadways for the Friday and weekend timeframes are 64th Street between New Utrecht and 15th avenues; and 65th Street between 14th and 15th avenues. Saturday/Sunday closures only for two blocks of New Utrecht Ave. between 64th and 66th streets.

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COINEX CRYPTOCURRENCY PLATFORM SUED FOR FAILURE TO REGISTER AS BROKER-DEALER

STATEWIDE — New York Attorney General Letitia James has sued cryptocurrency platform COINEX (CoinEx), for failing to register as a securities and commodities broker-dealer and for falsely representing itself as a crypto exchange. Through this enforcement action, Attorney General James seeks to permanently stop CoinEx from operating in New York through its website and mobile apps.

The Martin Act, which was passed more than a century ago (1921) and used very infrequently until former State Attorney General Eliot Spitzer’s administration, is a state anti-fraud law that grants the Attorney General of New York expansive law enforcement powers in conducting securities fraud investigations and to bring criminal or civil action against violators.

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GROUND BROKEN FOR BAY RIDGE CENTER EXPANSION

BAY RIDGE — The Bay Ridge Center will be receiving $2 million in federal funds from Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-11/southwest Brooklyn) so that critical renovations and upgrades can be made to its senior center. Specifically, the Bay Ridge Center will use the funding to improve its senior center’s drop-off area and entrance, install new ADA-compliant bathrooms, add a food-prep kitchen, upgrade its electrical HVAC systems, and install fire protection including a new sprinkler system. Additionally, Malliotakis joined Bay Ridge Center leadership in breaking ground on a new 21,000-square-foot facility to meet the expanding needs of current clients and the community.

The NYC Department for the Aging has identified Southwest Brooklyn as a community expecting a significant increase (greater than 75%) in demand for senior services over the next seven to eight years.

Congressmember Nicole Malliotakis (wearing dark gray blazer, participates in the groundbreaking. Photo: Office of Rep. Nicole Malliotakis.

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FREELANCE ISN’T FREE BILL REINTRODUCED AFTER GOVERNOR HOCHUL’S PRIOR VETO

STATEWIDE — State Senator Andrew Gounardes (D-22) and Assemblymember Harry Bronson (D-Rochester) have reintroduced their Freelance Isn’t Free bill (S5026), which would protect contract and freelance workers from wage theft by ensuring all freelancers receive appropriate contracts for their work, are paid within 30 days of their work, and have state support to recoup unpaid wages. A prior version of the bill, S8369, was passed by the legislature last session but ultimately vetoed by the Governor late last year.

The state-wide Freelance Isn’t Free legislation would build on a 2017 New York City bill, introduced by then-Councilmember Brad Lander by requiring written contracts to be given for any worker receiving more than $800 for their work, and providing workers with additional financial remedies if the contractor tries to avoid paying them.