Long Island City Man Gets 12 Years In Prison For Rape: DA

LONG ISLAND CITY, QUEENS — A Long Island City man has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for following a woman off a city bus and sexually assaulting her, prosecutors announced Thursday.

Matthew Luna, 27, pleaded guilty to rape for the attack last year in Sunnyside, according Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz's office.

Luna was accused of following a 20-year-old woman as she got off a bus near 54th Street and Skillman Avenue the night of Feb. 15, 2019, prosecutors said.

Luna asked the woman for directions, then told her she was pretty and asked for hug. After she backed away, startled, Luna grabbed her.

"Just give me what I want so I don't have to kill you," he reportedly told her.

Luna then sexually assaulted the woman.

He surrendered himself to the NYPD three days later and pleaded guilty to a first-degree rape charge in January, according to prosecutors.

Queens Supreme Court Judge Karen Gopee sentenced Luna to 12 years and 10 years’ post-release supervision. He will also be required to register as a sex offender.

"It was a vicious, violent act that should never happen on our streets," Katz said in a statement Thursday.