Arrests made in deadly NYC gay bar druggings, 1 suspect still at large
NEW YORK CITY - The New York City Police Department has arrested two of the three suspects wanted in connection with the deaths of two men found drugged after leaving gay bars in Manhattan.
Investigators said the suspects targeted their victims, drugged them and wiped their bank accounts using facial recognition technology on the victims’ iPhone.
According to police, Jacob Barroso, 30, of Connecticut, faces charges, including murder and robbery.
Barroso, as well as two other men, are accused in the 2022 deaths of John Umberger, 33, and Julio Ramirez, 25.
Both were drugged in two different gay bars in Hell's Kitchen, police said.
Later on Monday, Robert Demaio, 34, was arraigned in connection to the homicides and what the NYPD said is a citywide robbery pattern involving at least 17 incidents.
Jayqwan Hamilton, who police said is a possible third suspect, is still at large.
Umberger was at The Q NYC, a popular gay nightclub in Hell's Kitchen, last Memorial Day weekend. He was last seen leaving with two men. Two days later, his body was found in an apartment on the Upper East Side.
Umberger's phone and credit cards were stolen and more than $25,000 was drained from his bank account.
Umberger was found dead after going to a gay club in Manhattan's Hell's Kitchen neighborhood.
His mother, Linda Clary, spoke out about his death.
Clary said her son was targeted because he was gay. That is the same claim a friend of Ramirez made last April.
Ramirez died in an eerily similar manner a month before Umberger.
Ramirez was found dead in the back of a taxi after going to a gay nightclub in Manhattan.
He was found dead in the back of a taxi an hour after he was seen leaving The Ritz, a gay club two blocks from The Q NYC.
Ramirez's phone and credit cards were gone and about $20,000 was missing from his accounts.
Clary said since she has gone public about her son's death, several parents have reached out to her to say their own son had a similar experience, but lived.
"When there’s a bias based aspect to the crime, that needs to be taken particularly serious. When people believe a community has been targeted, whether its LGBTQ, the Jewish community, the African American community, those need to be taken particularly seriously," said Council member Erik Bottcher.