A former FDNY firefighter from Oakland Gardens pleaded guilty on Wednesday, July 1, to manslaughter in the second degree and vehicular manslaughter for driving while intoxicated and slamming his Mercedes-Benz into another motorist at the intersection of Northern Boulevard and 107th Street in East Elmhurst on Feb. 26, 2025.
The victim, 23-year-old Justin Diaz, was driving northbound on 107th Street and had the right of way when he entered the intersection when off-duty firefighter Michael Pena, 29, of 220th Street, t-boned his car at 83 miles per hour—traveling three times the posted speed limit—while Diaz was on his way to work at LaGuardia Airport.
According to the charges and the indictment, at 4:15 a.m. that morning, Pena was driving a silver Mercedes S63 Coupe eastbound on Northern Boulevard. He sped through a steady red light and slammed into the driver’s side of a purple BMW driven by Diaz.
Justin Diaz was on his way to work at LaGuardia Airport when his car was slammed by off-duty FDNY firefighter Michael Pena, who was allegedly speeding on Northern Boulevard after a night of bar hopping in late February, 2025.
Justin Diaz in the purple BMW he was ultimately killed in.Photo courtesy of Angelina Diaz
The force of the impact sent his car into a parked vehicle. EMS rushed him to Elmhurst Hospital with severe trauma, where he was pronounced dead due to his injuries a short while later.
Diaz was killed by Michael Pena in a high-speed crash on Northern Boulevard in East Elmhurst.Photo courtesy of Angelina Diaz
Pena stayed at the scene where a police officer observed a strong odor of alcohol on his breath, watery eyes, slurred speech and he was unsteady on his feet. A court authorized blood test indicated that Pena had a blood alcohol content of .17 at the time of the collision, which is above the legal threshold of .08%. He also had cocaine and marijuana in his system. The FDNY terminated Pena following his arrest.
“The defendant’s choices that morning irrevocably changed the lives of every family member, friend, neighbor and co-worker who loved Justin Diaz,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said. “Justice demands that Michael Pena be held accountable for his actions, and through this plea, my office has ensured that Justin Diaz’s death did not go unpunished.”
Queens Supreme Court Justice Michael Hartofilis remanded Pena into custody and ordered him to return to court July 16 when he faces four to 12 years in prison on the manslaughter charge and 2 ⅓ to seven years on the vehicular manslaughter charge, to run concurrently.
“Today, justice was finally served,” Franklin Diaz, the victim’s father said outside the courthouse. “No matter how many years Michael Pena serves in prison, it’s still not going to bring my son Justin Diaz back.”
The family and friends were disappointed following the court disposition on Wednesday, July 1.Photo by Ramy Mahmoud
He called on the state legislature to get tougher on drunk driving laws.
“DA Katz’s office did a great job, they worked tirelessly to get justice for us but there’s no reason that four to twelve years is an acceptable sentence for taking a life,” Diaz said. “Albany, you need to start listening to your people. We need stricter laws, harsher punishment for severe crimes such as this. No family should have to go through this again.”
He added that while his family marked the one-year anniversary of the fatal crash on Feb. 25 on the Corona street corner co-named Justin Diaz Way, Pena was in a bar.
When his family was marking the one-year anniversary of his son’s death on a the street corner co-named Justin Diaz Way on Feb. 26, his killer was in a bar, Franklin Diaz said.
“He’ll be out in a few years, and his life will continue. He will be back in the bars, probably, as he’s been doing all year long,” Diaz said. “We hope this serves as a reminder that drinking and driving isn’t a consequence for one life, it wasn’t just one life that was destroyed that night, it was countless lives of our family and friends. An innocent life was taken because of reckless choices and disregard for human life.”