Astorians Injured In Bat Attack, Hit-And-Run Crash Seek Help With Care

ASTORIA, QUEENS — Two Astoria men who were badly injured in unrelated crimes in recent weeks — an assault by a stranger and a hit-and-run crash — need help with medical bills in order to get back on their feet, friends and relatives say.

The first incident happened the morning June 15, when Gabe Jimenez — an Astoria resident and fitness trainer — was in his car, stopped in traffic near Astoria Boulevard and 18th Street, according to police and friends.

For unclear reasons, a man in another car then got out of his vehicle carrying a metal baseball bat and walked over to Jimenez, friends said. He swung the bat through the open car window, hitting Jimenez on the left side of the face, authorities said.

An NYPD spokesperson did not name Jimenez, but confirmed most details about the assault. The spokesperson also said the two men had been arguing before the assault, but a friend of Jimenez's said that no words had been exchanged.

A suspect, Quentin Cooper, was arrested about three weeks later and charged with felony assault, police said.

Jimenez suffered multiple bone fractures around his eye, sinus cavities, and cheek from the "unprovoked and unwarranted" attack — which also left him with double vision, loss of feeling and a loss of movement in his face, friends wrote in an online fundraiser for Jimenez.

Jimenez underwent facial surgery, but has been left unable to work and will need at least two more surgeries to reconstruct his face, friends said. The GoFundMe, seeking to help Jimenez make up for the lost income and pay for continued medical care, had raised $25,000 of its $30,000 goal by Wednesday.

The second incident, meanwhile, was the July 20 hit-and-run in Long Island City that critically injured a 30-year-old scooter rider.

That scooter rider was 30-year-old Brendan Marmolejos, also an Astoria resident, according to authorities — who mistakenly said Marmolejos had died last week before clarifying that he was still fighting for his life.

Marmolejos worked at Murray's Cheese Bar, which has a location in Long Island City, relatives told the Daily News.

The crash left Marmolejos with "many broken bones, lacerations and severe brain trauma," cousin Jason Meneses wrote in a GoFundMe. As of last week, he remained unconscious and sedated.

The fundraiser, aiming to pay Marmolejos's medical bills and help his mother stay by his side, had raised around $20,100 out of its $25,000 goal by Wednesday.

"Brendan is so much to so many people and I’m hoping that now in his time of need we can all reach deep and help him as he would any of us," Meneses wrote.

A suspect, 40-year-old Dwayne C Bovell, was arrested days later, accused of hitting Marmolejos before fleeing the scene, police said.