Police on Thursday arrested a 23-year-old suspect on murder charges for allegedly killing a man in July of 2022 — finally apprehending a suspect in the 19-month-old Manhattan cold case.
NYPD officers slapped the cuffs on Juan Peguero on Feb. 15, accusing him of killing 24-year-old Erni Garcia in Inwood nearly two years ago.
According to the investigation, police responded to a 911 call on July 11, 2022, where they found Garcia lying on the ground near 187 Sherman Ave. with a gunshot wound to his chest.
Paramedics rushed the injured victim to Saint Barnabas Hospital at around 8 p.m, where doctors soon pronounced him dead.
Police then investigated the killing for 585 days without nabing any suspects, until they arrested Peguero in Midtown.
Authorities detained the suspect on charges murder and criminal possession of a weapon, and he is slated to be in court on Friday.
A spike in murders across NYC
Garcia’s murder came amid a yearslong spike in homicides throughout New York City, as 2022 saw 438 killings on the streets of the five boroughs.
That year marked the third-most homicides reported by the NYPD over the preceding — behind only 2021 and 2020.
Between 2010 and 2019, the city saw an average of 372.5 murders per year, but the next three years saw an average of 465 killings in the Big Apple — sending alarm bells throughout the public, who were already reeling from the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
That three-year jump showed some signs of slowing in 2023, as the NYPD investigated 386 homicide deaths throughout last year.
This year also appears to be trending better, as there have been 39 killings since 2024 began — which is on pace to be 20.4% lower than last year, according to police data.
“Let’s be clear: New York City remains the safest big city in America,” Mayor Eric Adams said earlier this month, touting the drop in violent crime. “And thanks to the men and women of the Police Department, we’re going to continue to be that.”
