🌱 NYPD Seeking Car Thieves + Record West Nile Mosquitoes Detected

Hello all. It's me, Miranda Fraraccio, your host of the Queens Daily. Here's all the community news you need to know right now.

First, today's weather:

Partly sunny and warmer. High: 85 Low: 69.

Here are the top three stories in Queens today:

1. The NYPD is investigating the theft of five cars from an auto body shop in Flushing. According to officers, at around 5:00 a.m. on Sunday, Jul. 31, fve individuals entered the Essential Auto Care on 73rd Place through a window. Once inside, the suspects took five vehicles and fled in different directions. One vehicle was recovered with an occupant, who has been arrested, and three other vehicles were recovered unoccupied. Video footage of two suspects has been released. (1010 WINS)
2. West Nile Virus has been detected in a record number of mosquitoes in New York City, according to officials. The virus has been detected in two people and in mosquitoes in all five boroughs. Health Commissioner Dr. Ashwin Vasan recommends residents use EPA-registered insect repellents and wear long sleeves and pants to ward off mosquitoes. You can also reduce your mosquito risk by eliminating standing water from your property and dispose of containers that could collect standing water. (nyc.gov)
3. Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Felicia Mennin has set the trial date for Lauren Pazienza, the Queens party planner accused of fatally shoving a Broadway singing coach. The accused did not speak in court as the judge set the trial date for Oct. 6. Pazienza pled not guilty to manslaughter charges for the death of Barbara Maier Gustern on Mar. 10. Gustern's voice coaching credits include Debbie Harry of Blondie and the Broadway cast of "Oklahoma." Prosecutors say that Pazienza, unprovoked, shoved Gustern with so much force that she fell onto her head. (New York Daily News)

Today in Queens:

• Compost Beautification Community Volunteer Day at Queens Botanical Garden (1:00 PM)
• Leon Bridges at Forest Hills Stadium (7:00 PM)
• Microcave at Culture Lab LIC (7:00 PM)

From my notebook:

• Ready for a cruise? What about a Jungle Cruise? Queens Botanical Garden invites you to see the Emily Blunt and Dwayne Johnson film on Friday. Click the link for tickets to the showing, which starts at 7:30 p.m. (Queens Botanical Garden via Facebook)
• Queens, New York invites you to Rockaway's Arverne Cinema for Einstein on the Beach. The experimental opera will be on-screen this Friday, Aug. 19 at 7:30 p.m. (itsinqueens.com)
• Queens Borough President Donovan Richards invites you to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival. The Sep. 1 celebration, held at the Helen Marshall Cultural Center, is hosted by AAPI leaders and organizations to mark the lunar holiday. (Queens Borough President Donovan Richards via Facebook)

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• Corn & Tomatoes at the Cunningham Park Farmers Market (August 21)
• A 50s and 60s Garden Concert! (August 28)
• A 50s & 60s Garden Concert at the College Point Cultural Center & Museum at Poppenhusen Institute (August 28)
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Announcements:

• Behind The Scoreboard – Congratulations To Rockville Centre’s Lori King (Details)
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You're officially in the loop for today! See you tomorrow morning for another update.

— Miranda Fraraccio

About me: Miranda Fraraccio is a born and raised Rhode Islander, now living in New York. She works as a staff writer for content creation agency Lightning Media Partners and is a graduate of The University of Rhode Island, where she earned a degree in Writing & Rhetoric and Communication Studies. In her free time, you can find her traveling, drinking tea, or photographing her neighborhood as a street photographer.