Jamaica Man Guilty Of Murder in Violent Queens Break-In: Jury

JAMAICA, QUEENS -- A knock on the door of their Jamaica apartment was the beginning of a horrific afternoon for one Queens family, who watched a trio of masked men kill one of their own in a violent break-in.

Years later, a Jamaica man behind one of those masks faces life in prison. Elijah Gough, 31, was convicted for his part in the burglary-turned-murder after after a mask found near the family's home with his DNA on it linked him to the 2014 crime, Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said on Thursday.

"The defendant in this case participated in an afternoon of horrors for one family," Brown said.

On Dec. 4, 2014, Gough and two other masked men knocked on the door of the Legister family's second-floor Jamaica apartment at around around 6 p.m., prosecutors said. The three men then forced their way into the home, spraying Jonathan Legister, 27, in the face with mace and holding him and his 74-year-old mother, Olive, at gunpoint.

Taquane Clarke, Legister's 21-year-old nephew, was in his bedroom during the break-in, where he was shot in the head and killed by one of the gunmen, court records showed.

The three then forced Legister into the back of his apartment and demanded property before shooting him in the leg and stomach, prosecutors said. He survived the injuries.

Gough, whose leg was shot in the crossfire, limped his way out of the apartment in an attempt to flee the crime scene, according to trial testimony. He only got as far as a neighbor's yard, where he hid for hours before hitching a ride to a nearby hospital.

Cops later found a backpack, a sneaker and a mask with DNA that matched Gough's on it in the yard, according to the testimonies.

A Queens Supreme Court jury deliberated for around three hours before finding Gough guilty of second-degree murder, first-degree assault, first-degree burglary, first-degree attempted burglary, second-degree kidnapping and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon.

Gough faces anywhere from 25 years to life in prison for the crimes. He is set to be sentenced on Feb. 15.

Lead photo via Shutterstock.