Reputed MS-13 Members Charged In Teen's Jamaica Stabbing, DA Says

JAMAICA, NY — Two reputed members of the MS-13 street gang have been charged with brutally attacking a teen near the Jamaica Long Island Rail Road station, prosecutors said Monday.

Dani Cruz, 25, and Maxwell Martinez, 24, face attempted murder and assault charges for beating and stabbing the boy after he was knocked off his bicycle in August, the Queens District Attorney's Office said. The two Jamaica residents each face up to 25 years in prison if convicted.

"A young man, just a teenager, was viciously beaten and stabbed repeatedly and is lucky to be alive today," Queens DA Richard Brown said in a statement. "This kind of brutality is unacceptable in a civilized society and shows a disregard for human life."

Cruz and Martinez allegedly assailed the 17-year-old around 10:25 p.m. on Aug. 31 near Sutphin Boulevard and 94th Avenue. The pair set upon the boy after knocking him off his bike, punching and kicking him and stabbing him several times in the back, torso and arm, the DA's office said.

The teen was treated at an area hospital for his injuries, which included extensive nerve damage to his arm, the DA's office siad.

Cruz and Martinez had fresh blood on their clothes and shoes when they were arrested on unrelated charges at a bodega on 95th Avenue just blocks from the scene of the attack, prosecutors said. The blood was found to match that of the teen's, according to the DA's office.

While they both admitted their affiliation with MS-13, both Cruz and Martinez denied their involvement with the attack. Cruz said at the time of his arrest that he " was in the deli the entire time," adding that he was "drinking and did not remember what happened that night," the DA's office said.

Martinez claimed the blood on his pants came from cuts he had, saying he had a construction accident, prosecutors said. "I did not stab anyone," he said, according to the DA's office.

The two men were arraigned Monday and are next due in court Oct. 31, online court records show.

(Lead image: Photo from Shutterstock)