Scooter Shooter Charged In 86-Year-Old's Death Amid Spree: Queens DA

QUEENS — The scooter-riding gunman who killed an elderly man amid a multi-borough shooting spree last weekend has been charged with murder, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said Monday.

Brooklynite Thomas Abreu, 25, stands accused of fatally shooting Hamoud Saeidi, 86, and wounding three other people during a violent rampage in Brooklyn and Queens Saturday morning, according to police and prosecutors.

“The streets of two boroughs were turned into scenes of terror as this defendant allegedly rode his scooter, shooting indiscriminately at pedestrians and others,” Katz said.

Abreu could face a life sentence if convicted on charges that include murder, weapons possession, and assault, prosecutors said.

He was arraigned Monday morning before Judge Dunn, who ordered Abreu to return to court on July 13, prosecutors said, and Jonathan Latimer is representing the 25-year-old. No plea was required at the time of the arraignment, a spokesperson for the district attorney said.

The spree began in Cypress Hills where video footage caught Abreu shooting a pedestrian in the back on Ashford Street and Arlington Avenue about 11:10 a.m. prosecutors said.

Abreu was next seen about 15 minutes later on 108th Street and Jamaica Avenue in Richmond Hill,where he fatally shot Saeidi in the back, the District Attorney said.

In the moments that followed, Abreu shot at a pedestrian on the sidewalk then sped toward 126th Street and Hillside Avenue where he shot the driver of a parked minivan in the head, prosecutors said.

Abreu next shot a pedestrian in the shoulder on 134th Street and Jamaica Avenue about 11:30 a.m., prosecutors said.

Cops caught up with Abreu on his scooter less than two hours later on Sutphin Boulevard and Archer Avenue in Jamaica, according to prosecutors.

Police chased Abreu down and and caught him carrying a pistol, the district attorney said.

The Yemeni American Merchants Association grieved Saeidi, who was Muslim, and called on all community members to come together against gun violence.

"Hamoud Saeidi lost his life to a senseless act of violence when he was shot while walking down the street near his home in Queens," said Debbie Almontaser, Yemeni American Merchants Association Board secretary.

"We call upon our fellow merchants, community leaders, and citizens to unite during this critical time and work together to put an end to such senseless acts of gun violence."