The maniac accused of ruthlessly stabbing beloved FDNY EMS Lt. Alison Russo was discovered responsible of her homicide Monday — following a surprising trial the place her relations and colleagues had been compelled to relive the horrific act.
Jurors in Queens Supreme Court docket deliberated for lower than an hour earlier than convicting 37-year-old Peter Zisopoulos of second-degree homicide and weapon possession for randomly attacking Russo, 61, throughout her lunch break in September 2022.
Russo’s relations celebrated the swift verdict, which got here after an roughly week-long trial the place Zisopoulos took the stand and chillingly confirmed nearly no emotion as prosecutors performed ugly footage of the slaying.
“This brings closure for my household,” Craig Fuoco, Russo’s brother, stated after the jury’s resolution was delivered.
“Nothing can erase the ache. Alison’s missed every single day,” Fuoco stated, whereas flanked by his late sister’s FDNY colleagues and her daughter, Danielle Russo.
“We’re prepared to start out therapeutic and maintain Alison’s reminiscence alive,” he stated. “[I’m] completely happy that I believe justice was finished. Completely happy to begin to transfer ahead. However Alison will proceed to be missed. It’s persevering with to be tough to maneuver on, however we’ll discover a method.”
Zisopoulos, of Astoria, will face 25-years-to-life in jail at his sentencing June 30.
Video performed at trial confirmed the unhinged attacker knocking over the 9/11 first-responder and knifing her 20 instances only a half-block from her stationhouse.
Prosecutors stated Zisopoulos attacked Russo in broad daylight on Sept. 29, 2022 whereas she was on obligation in her uniform.
He walked out of his house constructing and rushed at Russo, shoving her to the pavement and getting on high of her — earlier than stabbing her repeatedly with a serrated kitchen knife within the chest and stomach, together with her lungs, liver and coronary heart.
A bystander on a scooter tried to intervene, however was chased away by a still-armed Zisopoulos, in keeping with trial proof.
The knife-wielding attacker then circled again — strolling round Russo as she lay bleeding out on the sidewalk — and returned to the house he shared together with his mom, prosecutors stated.
One other bystander noticed Zisopoulos and ran to a close-by EMS station for assist.
Police arrested Zisopoulos after a short standoff whereas he was locked in his house.
The serrated knife was discovered by cops in Zisopoulos’ entrance pants pocket, and examined optimistic for each his and Russo’s DNA, prosecutors stated.
Throughout his stint on the witness stand Friday, Zisopoulos repeatedly offered inconsistent responses in regards to the assault.
For example, he offered three totally different alibis for what he was doing when Russo was killed, together with telling the New York Submit throughout a jailhouse interview in 2023 that he had been busy watching Star Wars on the time.
“Alison Russo was a long-time public servant who cared deeply for the folks of New York. Our metropolis continues to be in mourning for a girl who saved numerous lives as a member of the FDNY EMS and as a volunteer together with her native ambulance firm on Lengthy Island,” Queens District Legal professional Melinda Katz stated in an announcement.
“I hope this conviction brings Alison’s household, buddies and coworkers solace as we proceed to grieve her loss.”
FDNY Commissioner Robert Tucker stated that whereas the decision is not going to deliver Russo again, “I pray her household and those that beloved her get some sense of closure from this.”
“Russo was a hero and continues to be a supply of inspiration and energy to her colleagues and to this Division,” Tucker stated in an announcement.
