{"id":140976,"date":"2026-02-21T13:49:27","date_gmt":"2026-02-21T13:49:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/140976\/"},"modified":"2026-02-21T13:49:27","modified_gmt":"2026-02-21T13:49:27","slug":"here-are-9-staten-islanders-who-made-news-this-week","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/140976\/","title":{"rendered":"Here are 9 Staten Islanders who made news this week"},"content":{"rendered":"

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. \u2014 Staten Island has seen a full week of headlines, with stories ranging from acts of compassion and public\u2011service milestones to criminal justice developments, infrastructure concerns and some unmistakably local oddities. <\/p>\n

Here are 9 Staten Islanders who made news this week:<\/p>\n

\"NicotraOn their 46th wedding anniversary, Lois and Richard Nicotra celebrated the ribbon-cutting of the newly renovated Lois and Richard Nicotra Heart Institute. This upgrade was funded by their generous contribution to Northwell’s Staten Island University Hospital.STATEN ISLAND ADVANCE<\/p>\n

1. Developers Richard & Lois Nicotra<\/p>\n

This philanthropic Staten Island couple has made the largest-ever gifts to both of Staten Island\u2019s hospitals, Richmond University Medical Center and Staten Island University Hospital. Their widespread giving has benefited institutions and families alike, prompting gratitude from the community. Read more >> <\/a><\/p>\n

2. Tax attorney Erika Kellerhals<\/p>\n

This former Staten Islander who served as Jeffrey Epstein\u2019s U.S. Virgin Islands tax attorney, appears in nearly 4,000 documents in the Epstein library on the Justice Department\u2019s website. A Staten Island-linked search within the newly released Epstein files also produced hundreds of additional results involving unusual keywords, drawing attention to the depth and reach of the records. Read more >> <\/a><\/p>\n

\"MarkIn this Aug. 25, 2023 photo, defense attorney Mark J. Fonte speaks at a press conference following a judge’s ruling in state Supreme Court, St. George.(Advance\/SILive.com | Jason Paderon)<\/p>\n

3. Defense attorney Mark Fonte<\/p>\n

A man who pled guilty to charges stemming from a three-month drug dealing investigation on Staten Island is portrayed by his defense attorney Mark Fonte as a parent struggling to support his family rather than a high\u2011level drug trafficker. But he will be sentenced to prison for five years. Read more >> <\/a><\/p>\n

4. Deborah Phelps\u2011Seda<\/p>\n

Neighbors on a Staten Island block say a powerful odor seeping through drains has made daily living unbearable. Officials are investigating the cause as residents continue reporting headaches and discomfort, but Deborah Phelps\u2011Seda stepped forward this week to fight for herself and others on the block. Read more >> <\/a><\/p>\n

5. Nurses Amy O\u2019Sullivan and Tiffany Latz<\/p>\n

Two Staten Island nurses stepped in when a frightened French bulldog\u2014who had been stolen\u2014was found abandoned in a freezing parking lot. Their quick action helped reunite the dog with its grateful owners. Read more >> <\/a><\/p>\n

\"NWSThis 1997 file photo shows Sgt. John Pszczola & Det. Eric Lerner walking with Daniel Galiano out of the 120 Precinct stationhouse.Advance\/SILive.com<\/p>\n

6. Daniel Galiano<\/p>\n

A man once nicknamed the hooded bandit, who was responsible for a series of armed robberies on Staten Island in the 1990s, has had his life sentence commuted. His release marks a major turn in a decades\u2011old criminal saga. Read more >> <\/a><\/p>\n

\"TurkeyOne of Staten Island’s infamous wild turkeys strolled into a Victory Boulevard crosswalk for a showdown with an MTA bus on Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026.(Courtesy of Andrew Bellah)<\/p>\n

7. The Silver Lake turkey<\/p>\n

A notoriously bold Staten Island wild turkey brought traffic to a stop after planting itself in front of an MTA bus. And then his photo went viral. Read more >> <\/a><\/p>\n

8. Borough President Vito Fossella<\/p>\n

Staten Island Borough President Vito Fossella strongly criticized a think\u2011tank proposal to build affordable housing on CUNY campuses, including the College of Staten Island. He argues the plan would worsen parking and transit challenges already facing students and staff. Read more >><\/a><\/p>\n

9. District Attorney Michael E. McMahon<\/p>\n

Police have deployed additional officers to Staten Island in response to a pattern of home break\u2011ins linked to a group dubbed the \u201cCrowbar Crew\u201d by the district attorney. Read more >> <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. \u2014 Staten Island has seen a full week of headlines, with stories ranging from acts…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":140977,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[9,24,63,134,136,135],"class_list":["post-140976","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-staten-island","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc","tag-staten-island","tag-staten-island-headlines","tag-staten-island-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/140976","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=140976"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/140976\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/140977"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=140976"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=140976"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=140976"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}