One defendant allegedly targeted the home of an Asian business owner
On April 10, Westchester County District Attorney Miriam E. Rocah and Ossining Police Department Chief Aaron Zimmerman announced that three Queens men were indicted for a September 2023 residential burglary in Ossining following a multi-agency investigation.
DA Rocah said: “Residential burglaries not only lead to a loss of property but make residents feel vulnerable in their own homes. One of these defendants allegedly targeted the home of Asian residents based on stereotypes about their wealth. Dangerous generalizations based on a person’s national origin are precisely what New York’s hate crime statutes are designed to address. I applaud the extraordinary work of the police and investigators in this case.”
Chief Zimmerman said: “These arrests were the result of a culmination of diligent investigative work conducted by multiple agencies all working together toward a common goal. I want to assure Ossining residents of our continued commitment to public safety and eradicating hate from our community.”
A Westchester County Grand Jury indicted the defendants on the following charges:
· Juan Carlos Sierra Gonzalez, 48, of East Elmhurst, was charged with two counts of Burglary in the First Degree as a Hate Crime, two counts of Burglary in the Second Degree as a Hate Crime, Burglary in the First Degree, Burglary in the Second Degree, Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree, and Possession of Burglar’s Tools.
· Jaime Bryan Chang-Fuentes, 25, of Jamaica, was charged with Burglary in the First Degree, Burglary in the Second Degree, Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree, and Possession of Burglar’s Tools.
· Job Vera Zambrano, 25, of Corona, was charged with Burglary in the First Degree, Burglary in the Second Degree, Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree, and Possession of Burglar’s Tools.
Gonzalez and Zambrano were arraigned on Apr. 9 before New York State Supreme Court Justice Anne E. Minihan in Westchester County Court. Chang-Fuentes, who failed to appear in court, will be arraigned on Apr. 16.
It is alleged that at approximately 12:18 p.m. on Sept. 29, 2023, the defendants unlawfully entered the Ossining home of a local business owner, who is Asian, and stole designer handbags. It is further alleged that the defendants were in possession of burglar’s tools commonly used to forcibly enter premises. Gonzalez allegedly targeted the victims’ home based on stereotypes about their wealth.
During a coordinated takedown, the Ossining Police Department, with the assistance of multiple law enforcement agencies, converged on the victims’ home and arrested the defendants during the incident.
The Briarcliff Manor Police Department, the Croton-on-Hudson Police Department, the Hastings-on-Hudson Police Department, the Sleepy Hollow Police Department, the Westchester County Department of Public Safety, the Westchester County Police’s Real Time Crime Center, the Greenburgh Drug and Alcohol Task Force, and New York State Police assisted with the investigation.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Celia Curtis of the Trials and Investigations Division.
The charges against the defendants are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
