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The suspected killer of NYPD cop Jonathan Diller has been formally charged in the Massapequa Park police officer’s shooting death Monday in Far Rockaway.
Guy Rivera, 34, of 35-06 21st St. in Queens, has been charged with murder of a police officer, attempted murder and two counts of criminal possession of a weapon, authorities said.
Police say he was the passenger in a car driven by Lindy Jones, 41, when Diller and a second NYPD officer approached the car, which was idling at a bus stop around 5:50 p.m.
Gunfire was exchanged, wounding Rivera, who allegedly squeezed off a fatal shot that entered Diller’s torso, beneath his vest, police said.
Diller later died Monday night at Jamaica Hospital. He is survived by his wife Stephanie and their 1-year-old son, Ryan. A candlelight vigil was held in Massapequa Park Wednesday evening, with wake and funeral services scheduled for today, Thursday, into Saturday in Massapequa.
Both suspects have long criminal records, police have said. New York City Mayor Eric Adams on Monday called the fatal shooting “not a crime problem, but a recidivist problem,” as Rivera had multiple prior arrests, including a recent gun arrest, and was “back on the streets.”
Jones, of 45- 19 Rockaway Beach Boulevard in Queens, was charged with criminal possession of a weapon, NYPD officials said.
Citing law enforcement sources, the New York Post is reporting that the two men were “believed to have been planning a robbery when Diller and other cops intervened.”
Photo from Wednesday’s candlelight vigil in Massapequa Park honoring Jonathan Diller. (Credit: Andrew Theodorakis/Yellow House Images)
