By Rebecca Henely
A jury convicted a 43-year-old Elmhurst man Friday of a vicious attack in which he slashed his girlfriend’s face and stomach and then three months later beat and raped her, the Queens district attorney’s office said.
Luis German Yunga, a resident of Penrod Street and 57th Avenue, was convicted of rape, burglary, assault, unlawful imprisonment and endangering the welfare of a child, the DA’s office said. The trial, which took place at the Queens Supreme Court under Justice Joel L. Blumenfeld took three weeks and the jury took eight hours of deliberation during a two-day period before they reached their verdict, the DA’s office said.
“The defendant changed his ex-girlfriend’s life and that of her young children forever two years ago, and while the physical scars of what occurred will be with her for the rest of her life, hopefully this conviction will provide her with some small measure of help in overcoming the trauma she and her daughters experienced during the assault on her,” Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said in a release.
Yunga’s crimes began May 29 when he invited his 38-year-old girlfriend to his house, saying they would talk about financial issues, the DA’s office said. When she came to his house, Yunga asked her to get back together with him, the DA said.
When she refused, Yunga took a knife from a drawer and slashed both sides of her face, stabbed her in the stomach and cut her arms, the DA said. Yunga then kept the woman in his apartment against her will for several hours, threatening to kill her daughters — an 8-year-old and a 4-year-old — if she tried to escape or went to the police, the DA said. Yunga eventually fled the scene, and the woman was taken to a local hospital for treatment.
Yunga attacked the woman again Aug. 12, when he went to her residence and rang the bell, Brown said. While the woman would not let him in, another resident of the building accidentally did and he barged into the woman’s apartment, the DA said. The 8-year-old daughter called 911, but Yunga still attacked the woman until she lost consciousness, then raped her in the presence of her daughter, Brown said.
Yunga attempted to escape by jumping out the window when the police arrived shortly after, but he was arrested, the DA’s office said.
Since that time, Yunga has been held in jail, the DA’s office said. His sentencing was scheduled for Dec. 23, and he faces up to 25 years in prison, the DA’s office said.
“The defendant’s conviction is more than justified and warrants imposition of a lengthy prison sentence to punish him and protect society,” Brown said.
Reach reporter Rebecca Henely by e-mail at rhenely@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4564.
