Two Self-Identified MS-13 Gang Members Plead Guilty to Attempted Murder in Hempstead Stabbings
Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly announced that two self-identified MS-13 gang members pleaded guilty to attempted murder charges in the assault and stabbing of two men in Hempstead in January.
Brandon Meza-Hernandez, 32, and Jonny Turcios, 35, each pleaded guilty on November 6, 2024, before Judge Howard Sturim to two counts of Attempted Murder in the Second Degree (a B felony).
Meza-Hernandez is expected to be sentenced to 10 years in prison when he is due back in court on January 9, 2025.
Turcios is expected to be sentenced to 12 years in prison on January 7, 2025.
Another co-defendant, Jose Lovo Parada, pleaded guilty to Attempted Assault in the First Degree (a C violent felony) on August 5, 2024. He is expected to be sentenced on November 20, 2024.
“My office has long been committed to cracking down on dangerous gang violence, particularly stemming from MS-13, which has worked to thoroughly entrench itself in our communities for years,” said DA Donnelly. “In partnership with the Nassau County Police Department, we apprehended three individuals, two of which are self-identified MS-13 gang members, who assaulted and brutally stabbed two victims in Hempstead earlier this year. Today’s guilty pleas are a testament to our steadfast obligation to ensuring the safety of every resident in Nassau and ridding these gangs from our streets.”
DA Donnelly said that between the hours of 3:45 a.m. and 4:00 a.m., on January 8, 2024, Meza-Hernandez, Turcios, and an unidentified male engaged in an altercation with one of the victims near 76 North Franklin Street in Hempstead.
The trio began hitting and kicking the victim and stated that they were members of MS-13. Turcios also displayed MS-13 gang signs with his hands.
A second victim attempted to intervene and became involved in a physical altercation with the three men. A bar bouncer from the nearby El Tenampa Bar then separated the individuals.
The two victims walked away from the incident and into a parking lot located in the rear of 79 Main Street.
Turcios and Meza-Hernandez then got into a vehicle, in which Parada was already seated, and began to follow the two victims into the parking lot, cornering them in a nearby dead-end alleyway. The unidentified male did not join them.
Turcios aimed the vehicle at the victims, and at a high rate of speed, drove into them, causing at least one victim to be struck by the vehicle and hit the front windshield.
The three defendants exited the vehicle and began assaulting the victims, and Turcios and Meza-Hernandez stabbed the victims with a knife that was later recovered from Turcios during an unrelated traffic stop later that day.
The defendants then fled the scene.
One victim was slashed in his arm, severing an artery, and was also stabbed in the neck. He was found by members of the Hempstead Police Department and emergency services, and was transported to NYU Langone Long Island Hospital, where he was treated for his injuries.
The other victim sustained three stab wounds to his back, resulting in a collapsed lung. He drove himself to South Shore University Hospital for treatment.
Meza-Hernandez was arrested in Freeport on January 18, 2024, by members of the Freeport Police Department.
Turcios was arrested in Freeport on January 19, 2024, by members of the Freeport Police Department.
Parada was arrested in Freeport on February 19, 2024, by members of the Freeport Police Department and detectives with the NCPD's Gang Investigations Squad.
The case is being prosecuted by Firearms Suppression and Intelligence Unit Chief Paula Cajdler of the Narcotics, Firearms, and Gangs Bureau under the supervision of Bureau Chief Nicholas Mauro, and under the overall supervision of Executive Assistant District Attorney for the Investigations Rick Whelan. Parada is represented by Jim Polk, Esq. Meza-Hernandez is represented by Kevin Morgan, Esq. Turcios is represented by Fred Pollack, Esq.