Arizona Man Admits To Gunning Down Friend, 20, On LIRR Train: DA

RIVERSIDE, NY — An Arizona man has admitted to gunning down a 20-year-old man on a Long Island Rail Road train in Ronkonkoma three years ago, Suffolk District Attorney Ray Tierney said.

Nicholas D’Agostino, 21, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and two counts of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon for fatally shooting Yusef Staine, of Wyandanch, on Feb. 16, 2022, while they were on a LIRR train, according to prosecutors.

D’Agostino is expected to be sentenced to 20 years to life in prison on his next court date on March 10.

He was charged in the crime in May 2023.

His defense attorneys, Keith O’Halloran of Westhampton Beach, and Tara Laterza of East Moriches, released the following statement to Patch: "This is a tragic situation on all accounts. Our client is a young man, who has taken responsibility for his actions and since the incident, has taken advantage of every opportunity offered to him inside the jail to better himself and further his education."

"Mr. D'Agostino intends to continue his efforts for the duration of his sentence to prepare himself for re-entry into society," the statement concluded.

Tierney said Agostino took his friend's life and while his office was able "to secure a substantial sentence of incarceration," "there is no legal consequence that can repair the harm done" to Staine or his loved ones.

D'Agostino arrived on Long Island on Feb. 13, after traveling from Arizona to meet Staine, and on Feb. 15, the pair, along with two other friends, took an LIRR train from Wyandanch to New York City, and in the early morning hours of Feb. 16, Staine and D’Agostino boarded a train back to Suffolk, prosecutors said.

After missing their stop in Wyandanch, the pair then boarded a westbound train in Ronkonkoma, prosecutors said, adding that upon boarding that westbound train, D’Agostino pulled a gun from his jacket pocket and shot Staine in the back of the head while walking behind him and when Staine fell to the ground, D’Agostino fired a second round into his torso before getting off the train.

D’Agostino ordered a Lyft which picked him up less than a mile from the Ronkonkoma train station and brought him to Yonkers, prosecutors said, adding that D’Agostino ultimately boarded a Greyhound bus destined for Arizona.

An extensive investigation by members Suffolk police's Homicide Squad led to D’Agostino’s ultimate apprehension and arrest in Yonkers on May 18, 2023, according to prosecutors.