Alvin Bragg, Jr., the Manhattan district attorney, on Fri., June 23, announced the sentencing of Joseph Sandoval, age 24, to 23 years to life in state prison for the 2021 Lower East Side robbery and murder of Sala Miah, a 51-year-old Bangladeshi immigrant deliveryman.
Sandoval, 23, pleaded guilty to one count of murder in the second degree on April 18.
“Joseph Sandoval robbed and murdered a hardworking deliveryman who was just trying to make a living,” Bragg said. “Mr. Miah was a beloved family man who came to this country for a better life, and his murder devastated his community. Delivery workers are an essential part of our city, and we will not accept any type of violence against them.”
As admitted in Sandoval’s guilty plea, on Oct. 15, 2021, he left his home in Queens carrying a butcher knife, intending to find an e-bike to steal. E-bikes sell for $1,000 to $2,000 or more.
Early the next morning, around 1 a.m., Sandoval traveled to the Lower East Side, where he found Miah sitting on a bench in Sara Roosevelt Park, taking a break after his GrubHub shift, his e-bike parked in front of him. Sandoval confronted Miah and demanded the e-bike. When Miah refused, Sandoval stabbed him in the stomach. Miah then tried to flee but Sandoval chased him, slashed him in the face, and stole the e-bike keys.
The attacker fled the scene — leaving the knife behind — and rode the stolen e-bike back home, hiding it in his garage.
He was arrested a few days later. Effecting a search warrant, officers recovered the stolen e-bike and keys.
Bragg thanked Detectives Joseph Barbara and Robert Hahn (formerly of the Manhattan South Homicide Squad) and Officer Armando Berrios (formerly of the 5th Precinct) for their efforts on the case.
More NYPD foot patrols needed at SDR park AT ALL TIMES due to the large number of shelters there.