Bay Shore Man Found Guilty Of Kidnapping At Knifepoint: DA
BAY SHORE, NY — A Suffolk County man was found guilty on Thursday of kidnapping and holding an ex-girlfriend at knifepoint, according to Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney.A jury found Holmark Garces, 35, of Bay Shore, guilty of kidnapping and other related charges for abducting his ex-girlfriend and taking her to Brooklyn at knifepoint before Supreme Court Justice John B. Collins, Tierney said.According to evidence established at trial, Garces and his girlfriend lived together in Bay Shore in OCtober 2019. During that time, Garces became extremely controlling and abusive and isolated the woman from her family and friends by repeatedly taking her cell phone to track her activity, the DA said. Garces reportedly continued the manipulative and controlling behavior after the victim moved out in December 2019, the DA said. On November 24, 2020, a five-year order of protection was issued on the victim's behalf. Despite the order of protection, Garces continued to stalk the victim at her home, work and in public, which led to multiple arrests for violating the order of protection, the DA said. Over the next two years, Garces was arrested on multiple occasions for violating the order of protection while harassing her at her home, calling her names at Wildwood State Park in Riverhead, and attempting to get her into his car while she was walking home one evening, among other incidents, the DA said. According to the DA, Garces’ continued conduct caused the victim to move and change jobs numerous times trying to hide from him. Then on October 12, 2022, at around 8:30 p.m., the victim was walking home from a friend's house in Brentwood when Garces approached her in his gray 1999 Toyota Corolla. He got out of the car, grabbed her by the hair and threw her on the ground before forcing her into the backseat of the car, the DA said. Witnesses heard the woman screaming for help while nearby surveillance footage captured audio of her screams, the DA said. The witnesses called 911 to report the abduction as Garces drove her to Brooklyn while holding a kitchen knife to her leg, the DA said. On the way to Brooklyn, the victim texted her son to call the police and told him that Garces had kidnapped her. Because the woman and her son had a GPS tracking app installed on their phones, Suffolk County Police were able to track her location, the DA said. When police located the vehicle, they observed the victim waving for help as Garces sped away to escape police. Once officers surrounded the vehicle in Brooklyn, Garces crashed the car into multiple NYPD vehicles in an attempt to flee, the DA said. NYPD officers arrested Garces at the scene and the kitchen knife was recovered from the vehicle, the DA said. Garces was indicted in Brooklyn on multiple charges related to this incident. The case is still pending.“My heart goes out to the victim for her strength to testify at trial against the defendant,” said Tierney. “I thank the officers in both the Suffolk County Police Department and the New York City Police Department for their investigations in this case, and my prosecutors for securing the defendant’s conviction."On May 9, Garces was charged with one count of second-degree kidnapping, a Class B violent felony; one count of third-degree criminal possession of a weapon, a Class D felony; five counts of first-degree criminal contempt, Class E felonies; one count of second-degree menacing, a Class A misdemeanor; and one count of first-degree harassment in the First Degree.Garces is due back in court for sentencing on June 14 and faces up to 25 years in prison. He is being represented by attorney John Halverson. He was not immediately available for comment.The article Bay Shore Man Found Guilty Of Kidnapping At Knifepoint: DA appeared first on Bay Shore, NY Patch.
Welcome to Billionaire Club Co LLC, your gateway to a brand-new social media experience! Sign up today and dive into over 10,000 fresh daily articles and videos curated just for your enjoyment. Enjoy the ad free experience, unlimited content interactions, and get that coveted blue check verification—all for just $1 a month!
Account Frozen
Your account is frozen. You can still view content but cannot interact with it.
Please go to your settings to update your account status.
Open Profile Settings