What you should know
- A 46-year-old Queens man has been charged with murder and other charges in the machete death of his 78-year-old mother, who was found bleeding and wrapped in bedding on the floor of the apartment they shared last year, officials said. tax.
- Maria Diaz’s daughter, one of her seven children, including the defendant, Osvaldo Diaz, was the one who made the grisly discovery in the second-floor apartment above a beauty salon on Hillside Avenue in February 2021, authorities said.
- A reason is unknown. The defense attorney said he has serious concerns about whether the 46-year-old is competent to participate in the criminal proceedings.
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NEW YORK — A 46-year-old Queens man has been charged with murder and other charges in the machete death of his 78-year-old mother, who was found bleeding and wrapped in bedding on the floor of the apartment they shared last year. past, prosecutors said.
Maria Diaz’s daughter, one of her seven children, including the defendant, Osvaldo Diaz, was the one who made the grisly discovery in the second-floor apartment above a beauty salon on Hillside Avenue in February 2021, authorities said.
The daughter had gone to the apartment to visit her mother that day. They had planned to run some errands and go for a walk. But when she arrived and called her mother on her cell phone, María Díaz did not answer. He tried several times to contact her.
Osvaldo Díaz eventually took his mother’s phone and allegedly told his sister to go to the store. Osvaldo Diaz was seen on surveillance video leaving the apartment after she left, prosecutors say. When he returned, no one answered his calls. She called the property owner, who let her into the apartment.
That’s where he found his mother’s body. María Díaz was pronounced dead at the scene.
Supposedly, Osvaldo Díaz was a fugitive before being arrested in New Jersey. He was extradited to Queens on Wednesday to stand trial on charges of second-degree murder and criminal possession of a weapon and has pleaded not guilty, his attorney, Jose Nieves, said Thursday.
After speaking with her client, Nieves says she immediately requested a psychiatric evaluation for Osvaldo Diaz. The defense attorney said he has serious concerns about whether the 46-year-old is competent to participate in the criminal proceedings.
Osvaldo Díaz must return to court next month. Authorities have not shared any potential motive for the murder. A large knife was recovered at the scene.
If convicted, he faces life in prison.
“The defendant allegedly attacked his mother with a machete, to the point of nearly decapitating her,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said. “This outbreak of violence has devastated the victim’s family, which includes her six other children.”
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