Three Rockland County men are facing federal charges in connection with the March 2023 killing of Eric Quinones, a 33-year-old Pomona man who was shot to death in the parking lot of his own apartment complex. Jaquey Wilkes, 29, and Tyrone Stewart, 35, both of Nyack, are charged with robbery and murder, while Leroy Simpson, 33, of Pomona, is accused of orchestrating the drug deal that prosecutors say set the deadly encounter in motion.
“As alleged, Jaquey Wilkes and Tyrone Stewart robbed and murdered Eric Quinones outside of his home during a drug deal orchestrated by Leroy Simpson,” U.S. Attorney SDNY
said in announcing the charges. “We will relentlessly” pursue and hold accountable people involved in drug and gun violence, the statement continued, according to the post shared from the Southern District of New York. Federal prosecutors allege Wilkes and Stewart brandished handguns during the robbery, stealing narcotics and a firearm from Quinones before shooting him, according to
Daily Voice
.
The Fatal Shooting
The violence unfolded on March 5, 2023, when Haverstraw Police responded to reports of gunfire around 7 p.m. at The Manors Apartments, a residential complex at 229 Route 202 in Pomona. Officers found only Quinones in the parking lot. Quinones was rushed to Nyack Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Quinones was born in nearby Suffern and had lived in Pomona his entire life, according to a report from the Hudson Valley Post published days after the shooting. He resided at the very apartment complex where he was killed.
Three-Year Investigation Spanned Multiple Agencies
Resolving the case took more than three years and required a sprawling interagency effort. The investigation was led jointly by the FBI Westchester County Safe Streets Task Force and the Town of Haverstraw Police Department, with assistance from the Rockland County Sheriff's Office, the Orangetown Police Department, and the Rockland County District Attorney's Office, according to Monsey Scoop's local report on the demographic background of the three defendants.
Haverstraw Police Chief John Gould Jr. commended detectives for sticking with the case for more than three years, per records from the New York State Association of Chiefs of Police.
Charges Carry Maximum Penalty of Life or Death
Wilkes and Stewart face a firearm murder charge, which carries a statutory maximum penalty of life imprisonment or death upon conviction, Monsey Scoop reported. All three defendants appeared in federal court on Tuesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Victoria Reznik, with the case assigned to U.S. District Judge Philip M. Halpern, the Department of Justice announced.
U.S. Attorney Jamie McDonald announced the charges.
Several questions remain open as the case moves toward trial, including whether prosecutors will pursue the death penalty under the firearm murder statute and how Simpson's alleged role in orchestrating the drug transaction will factor into the proceedings against all three men.
