NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) — A Queens man was sentenced to 25 years in prison following an unprovoked attack on a 6-year-old boy which left him with a fractured skull, prosecutors said.
Laurence Gendreau, 39, approached the boy and abruptly lifted him up and threw him down with force, slamming him onto the pavement head-first on Oct. 10, around 4:45 p.m.
The boy was waiting for a pizza delivery outside their grandparents' home in Kew Gardens, Queens. The victim's older brother quickly called for help from inside the house.
Gendreau ran off, but the victim's grandfather chased after him and flagged down a police officer, who arrested Gendreau near Lefferts Blvd. and Metropolitan Ave.
"The brutality displayed by this defendant toward an innocent child is heartbreaking. With this sentence, we have achieved justice for the young boy and his family and taken a dangerous man off of our streets," Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said.
The young victim suffered significant injuries, including a fractured skull, bleeding in the brain, and a collapsed lung. He was taken to the hospital. After undergoing medical treatment, the victim has since recovered.
Earlier that day, Gendreau, at around 3:30 p.m. on Union Turnpike in Kew Gardens, approached an 83-year-old woman and snatched her iPad. The stolen iPad was recovered when he was arrested.
Last month, a jury convicted Gendreau of multiple charges including attempted murder in the second degree, assault, endangering the welfare of a child, grand larceny, and criminal possession of stolen property.
