Man guilty in fatal stabbing outside club
A West Babylon man has been convicted of stabbing a 22-year-old man to death outside an Elmhurst nightclub after the two got into an argument over a woman.
Queens prosecutors said John Lundi, 26, could face up to 40 years in prison when he is sentenced Oct. 11. He was convicted Thursday of second-degree murder, first- and second-degree gang assault, second-degree assault, third-degree criminal possession of a weapon and tampering with evidence.
Three other people had pleaded guilty to their roles in the attack on Christopher Cotto, 22, of Brooklyn. They are awaiting sentencing.
"Such a senseless act of violence demonstrates that he is a threat to society and deserving of a lengthy prison sentence," Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown said in a statement.
Lundi's lawyer, Jorge Santos, of Forest Hills, said he was disappointed by the verdict.
"I thought it was unfortunate," he said. "There were a lot of inconsistencies in the eyewitness testimony."
Prosecutors said Cotto and his girlfriend were leaving the Krystal Club sometime before 4 a.m. on Nov. 27, 2008, when Lundi made a remark to Cotto's girlfriend.
Cotto and Lundi got into an fistfight, which grew to include several of Lundi's friends.
During the fight, Lundi stabbed Cotto in the chest with a butterfly knife, killing him, prosecutors said.
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