The two prime suspects in the deadly Queens shooting of Police Officer Jonathan Diller on Monday night have lengthy rap sheets to their name.
Police sources identified the pair as Guy Rivera, 34, who is currently hospitalized after being wounded in a shootout with Diller and his partner; and Lindy Jones, 41, who was taken into custody at the scene.
Rivera, the alleged shooter, served six years in prison after being convicted in 2016 of criminal possession of a controlled substance. During his time behind bars, he was additional convicted of a hate crime for throwing feces and urine at correctional officers, according to police sources.
Jones, meanwhile, has 14 prior arrests to his record, including a 2001 attempted murder charge for a shooting and robbery, and a 2019 arrest for domestic violence. In April 2023, Jones was picked up in Queens on a criminal possession of a weapon charge for possessing a firearm, and was released on $75,000 bail.
Charges against Rivera and Jones are still pending the results of the ongoing investigation into the killing of Diller, who was gunned down during a hail of bullets at the corner of Mott Avenue and Beach 19th Street in Far Rockaway at about 4:52 p.m. on March 25.
Police officials said Monday night that Diller and his partner, assigned to the Patrol Borough Queens South Community Response Team, approached a vehicle allegedly driven by Jones, with Rivera in the passenger seat, after observing the car parked in a bus stop.
Seconds later, authorities said, the passenger inside the vehicle displayed a handgun and pointed it at the two officers. This led to an exchange of gunfire, during which Diller took a fatal bullet to his abdomen that lodged just below the bulletproof vest he wore.
Despite being wounded, Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said, Diller managed to grab hold of the shooter’s weapon, which had been dropped after the suspect had been shot in the back.
EMS rushed Officer Diller to Jamaica Hospital, where he died later that evening after undergoing emergency surgery, to no avail. Rivera, meanwhile, was also hospitalized at Jamaica Hospital for treatment of his bullet wound.
Diller, just 31 years of age, had been a member of the NYPD for three years and made more than 70 arrests during his short career, according to Kenny. He resided in Massapequa Park with his wife and their infant child; the community is planning a memorial vigil scheduled to take place Wednesday evening.
A family friend is currently raising funds via GoFundMe for the family; as of noon Tuesday, more than $57,000 had been raised, close to 60% of the $100,000 goal.
On Tuesday, the Police Benevolent Association announced the funeral arrangements for Diller. Visitation will take place on Thursday and Friday, March 28-29, at Massapequa Funeral Home South Chapel on Merrick Road in Massapequa Park. His funeral Mass will take place at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, March 30, at St. Rose of Lima Church in Massapequa.
At his off-topic press conference Tuesday at City Hall, Mayor Eric Adams explained the difficulty of being gathered at the hospital Monday night with Diller’s wife and parents, and the anguish they endured.
“Jonathan is just a symbol off those of you who have children, imagine, you know, just the pain of going through something that’s unnatural,” Mayor Adams said. “Parents should never have to bury their children. There’s nothing natural about that, or watching his wife as she’s just holding on, just you know, hoping not to hear those words” that he had died.
“It’s just a senseless act of violence,” the mayor said.
Assistant Commissioner Kaz Daughtry, in a post on X (the platform formerly known as Twitter), remembered Diller as a critical member of the Community Response Team, a group of “highly trained officers whose mission it is to restore order.” Their work usually focuses on “quality of life conditions that disrupt our way of life and diminish our collective safety.”
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“Many of these offenses also escalate into other, more dangerous crimes,” Daughtry said. “Officer Jonathan Diller was one of these officers. He was committed to the mission. He went in harm’s way so others wouldn’t have to. His service mattered. He will never be forgotten.”
