NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — A man surrendered to police on Saturday and faces a slew of charges, including murder, in connection with at least one of the two men who were drugged and killed after visiting Hell's Kitchen gay bars last year, according to police and reports.
Jacob Barroso, 30, is charged with murder, robbery, grand larceny, conspiracy, identity theft and conspiracy in the death of Brooklyn social worker Julio Ramirez, 25, who was approached by three men as he left the Ritz Bar and Lounge in Hell's Kitchen early on April 21, 2022, police said Sunday.
Eventually, Ramirez was found dead alone in the back of a cab downtown, police told PIX 11. His phone and wallet were missing, and his family discovered that $17,000 had been taken from his bank accounts.
Another victim, political consultant John Umberger, 33, was found dead on June 1, several days after leaving The Q club in Hell's Kitchen. NYPD Det. Randy Rose reportedly linked his death to what happened to Ramirez.
Both men had a lethal cocktail of drugs in their systems, including fentanyl cocaine and lidocaine. Thieves used facial recognition on Umberger's iPhone to steal $22,000 from his bank accounts.
The city medical examiner identified both deaths as homicides caused by "drug-facilitated theft."
Barroso's arrest came after police on Friday identified him, Jayquan Hamilton and Robert Demaio as wanted in connection with the drug-related homicides.
Investigators told NBC News that Barroso is also charged in a separate incident in which an unidentified victim did not die.
Sources told NBC News last week that a Manhattan grand jury has indicted several suspects in connection with the deaths of Umberger and Ramirez. Prosecutors said one of the suspects, Shane Hoskins, was arraigned on felony larceny and identity theft charges. Parts of the indictment remain sealed, so it's unclear if Barroso, Hamilton and Demaio are among the other defendants.
According to the indictment, once the victims were "incapacitated to the extent that their ability to perceive events became diminished," the five co-conspirators would then steal their victims' cell phones and credit cards, using the physical cards and information stored on the victims' phones to transfer money to themselves and make purchases.
The NYPD's Hate Crime Task Force is investigating, though sources told NBC News that the five suspects were targeting victims for financial gain and not because of their sexual orientation.
The NYPD confirmed to PIX 11 that they are investigating at least two citywide patterns of robberies in which thieves use drugs to steal from their victims. At least seven homicides, including that of fashion designer Katie Gallagher, have been linked to the thefts.
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