(SUFFOLK COUNTY, N.Y.) – District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney today announced that Dionicio Calderon, 65, was found guilty after a jury trial of fatally shooting two men and wounding two others at a Copiague deli in 2020.

“This defendant opened fire inside a public place with little regard to the consequences of his actions, killing and wounding multiple victims,” said District Attorney Tierney. “I thank the jury for their careful attention to this case which gives justice to the victims and their families. The defendant’s outrageously violent conduct in this case should be enough to ensure that he is never released from prison again.”

The evidence at trial established that shortly after 6 p.m. on December 12, 2020, Calderon walked into La Vaquita deli located at 2340 Great Neck Road in Copiague. Minutes later, and without any warning, he pulled out a 9 mm handgun and started shooting. First, he shot 47-year-old Manuel Cruz Hernandez, a customer, multiple times in his head and body. Calderon then turned the gun on 61-year-old Bolivar Rodriguez, the deli owner, shooting him once in the head. Calderon continued to fire his weapon, striking two other customers, 40-year-old Daniel Acosta, who was struck once in the torso, and 30-year-old Juan Avila Roque, who was struck in the left arm and chest. Hernandez and Rodriguez both died as a result of their injuries. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Dena Rizopoulos of the Major Crime Bureau and Bureau Chief Timothy Gough of the Homicide Bureau.