04/24/2026
⚖️ RECENT UPDATES FROM THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY'S OFFICE ⚖️
Full news releases on these cases can be found on the Erie County DA's Office website: www4.erie.gov/da/news
A jury found Brian Scott Lorenzo, 56, guilty of all counts in the indictment for the murder of Deborah Meindl, 33, who was killed inside her City of Tonawanda home on February 17, 1993. Lorenzo remains held without bail.
Anderson Tate, Sr., 77, of Buffalo, was indicted on one count of Murder in the Second Degree (Class A-I felony). He is accused of killing his wife, Patricia Tate, 70, inside their Cedar Avenue home on December 30, 2025. Tate was held without bail.
Angel Gonzalez-Rondon, 22, of Cheektowaga, was indicted on murder, weapon possession and unlawful fleeing a police officer charges. He is accused of fatally shooting Jihad Gibbs, 21, on Walden Avenue in Buffalo on April 6, 2026. Gonzalez-Rondon was held without bail.
Jamere Davis, 21, of Town of Tonawanda, was indicted on murder, robbery, weapon possession and evidence tampering charges for his alleged involvement in the fatal shooting of Samuel Whisonant, 47, on Thompson Street in Buffalo in September 2025. Davis was held without bail.
Miguel A. Castro, Jr., 19, of Town of Tonawanda, was indicted on one count of Murder in the Second Degree. He is accused of fatally stabbing his grandmother, Anna M. Moore, 47, at his home on February 16, 2026. Castro remains held without bail.
Jerome A. Cole, 28, of Buffalo, pleaded guilty as jury selection was underway in his trial for the fatal shooting of his brother, Marcus Cole, 35, on July 11, 2022. He entered a guilty plea to the lesser included offense – Manslaughter in the First Degree. Cole, who remains held without bail, faces a maximum of 25 years in prison when he is sentenced next month.
Moteiff J. Wafer-Collins, 21, was sentenced to 16 years in prison followed by 5 years of post-release supervision after pleading guilty to Manslaughter in the First Degree for a crime he committed at age 16. The victim, Donovan M. Miller, 19, was fatally shot on Laird Avenue in Buffalo in October 2021. Wafer-Collins was prosecuted as an adolescent offender in the Youth Part of Superior Court due to his age at the time of the homicide. He was denied youthful offender adjudication.
Abdula Hussein, 27, of Buffalo, received a determinate sentence of 22 years in prison followed by 5 years of post-release supervision for the fatal shooting of his co-worker, Tawfaik Alsheari, 67, inside a corner store in Buffalo's Broadway-Fillmore neighborhood on February 21, 2023.
Dejuan L. Williams, also known as Juan Quionos, 42, of Buffalo, was indicted on 12 counts for allegedly shooting a store clerk during an attempted robbery and firing a shot at a police officer at a convenience store on the city's West Side on April 15, 2026. Williams was subsequently shot by another officer. He remains hospitalized for an injury to his arm. Our office reviewed the incident and determined the actions of both police officers were justified. The officer who fired the shots has been cleared of any criminal wrongdoing.
Claude T. Tortora, 57, was sentenced to 20 years to life in prison after a jury found him guilty, as charged, of Predatory Sexual Assault Against a Child (Class A-II felony). If Tortora is later released under parole supervision, he will be required to register as a s*x offender. A final order of protection was issued on behalf of the victim, which remains in effect until 2076.
Joseph F. Decker, 66, of Springville, pleaded guilty to Attempted Course of Sexual Conduct Against a Child (Class C violent felony). He faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison and will be required to register as a s*x offender upon his release. A temporary order of protection, issued on behalf of the victim, remains in effect. Decker continues to be held without bail.
Marcus Oluwa, Jr., 21, pleaded guilty to all counts in the indictment for possession of an illegal gun that was recovered during the investigation into a non-fatal shooting that injured a toddler in the Village of Sloan in July 2025. Oluwa, who was released on bail, faces a maximum of 15 years in prison when he is sentenced in July.
Jayshawn L. Williams, 35, of Buffalo, received a determinate sentence of 13 years in prison and 5 years of post-release supervision after a jury found him guilty for committing an armed robbery of a liquor store in the Town of Hamburg in November 2022. Williams was sentenced as a second violent felony offender.
Quameir K. King, 24, of Buffalo, was sentenced as a second violent felony offender to 10 years in prison followed by 5 years of post-release supervision for shooting a woman on Woltz Avenue in the City of Buffalo last March. A final order of protection was issued for the victim, who continues to recover from the injuries, and a witness.
Avello A. Pena, 35, of Tonawanda, was sentenced to 12 years in prison and 5 years of post-release supervision for menacing a victim outside of a grocery store on Jefferson Avenue in Buffalo last June. Pena pleaded guilty to all counts in the indictment. A co-defendant, Ronnie Midgett, 39, of Buffalo, was sentenced to three years of probation.
A juvenile offender was sentenced to 2 to 6 years of incarceration. He pleaded guilty to all charges for committing a shooting when he was 14-years-old that injured another teenager in Buffalo's Delavan-Grider neighborhood in June 2024.
Jurors found Eric D. Hawkins, Jr., 40, of Buffalo, guilty of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree (Class C violent felony). Officers recovered a gun, reported stolen in Dallas, Texas, after he fled from a traffic stop in July 2024. Hawkins, who remains held without bail, faces up to 15 years in prison when he is sentenced in late April.
A 17-year-old male was arraigned on felony charges for allegedly bringing an unloaded handgun into a Buffalo Public School on April 1, 2026 The adolescent offender was remanded to the custody of the Erie County Youth Services Center.
Emery S. Kawski, 21, pleaded guilty, as charged, to felony Aggravated Cruelty to Animals for intentionally killing a dog inside his City of Tonawanda residence last February. “Pop Rocks,” a 4-year-old male Boston Terrier, died from multiple stab wounds. Kawski faces up to two years of incarceration when he is sentenced in June.
Keith M. Call, 63, pleaded guilty to felony charges for stealing more than $82,000 while working as a business manager for St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Church of Swormville and Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Roman Catholic Church in Williamsville. As a condition of the plea, Call paid full restitution to the victims.
