ASTORIA — The suspect who went on a violent spree through the neighborhood earlier this month, killing a man and injuring two others before he was shot by police, was arraigned last week on a number of charges including second degree-murder, officials said.
James Dillon, 23, was arraigned Thursday while still hospitalized following the March 6 rampage in which he fatally stabbed a local store owner, slashed a woman and set another man on fire, according to the Queens District Attorney's Office.
He faces charges of second-degree murder, two counts of attempted murder, first-degree assault, two counts of second-degree assault and three counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth-degree, according a criminal complaint.
Officials say Dillon, an Astoria resident, first slashed a neighbor on his block on 36th Street shortly after 11 a.m. on March 6.
Later that afternoon, he entered a liquor store at 38-18 Astoria Blvd. and fatally stabbed 55-year-old store owner George Patouhas in the neck. He then tossed a liquid on Patouhas and another man in the shop and set them on fire, the complaint said.
Dillon was apprehended that evening after being cornered by two police officers near his home, where he refused orders to drop a knife he was carrying, police said. The officers shot him seven times after Dillon sprayed them with an accelerant.
Following the incident, Dillon was tied to another slashing that took place in Jackson Heights that same day, in which he allegedly slashed a 43-year-old man in the back of the neck on Roosevelt Avenue, according to police.
He has not been charged with that crime, according to the criminal complaint. Police are continuing to investigate, and it's possible more charges may be filed, a spokeswoman for the DA's office said.
Information on Dillon's defense attorney was not immediately available.
