NY woman killed by ex-boyfriend in murder-suicide contacted police twice in days before killings – Regan Smith was shot and killed by her ex-boyfriend, Nelson Giron, at her home on Friday
“She was scared of him”.
“They [police], did nothing and now she’s gone” – Victim’s friend
Regan Smith, was shot and killed by her ex-boyfriend, Nelson Giron, at her home on Sept 21
Smith, 31, of Queens, NY, was killed by her ex in murder-suicide after she contacted NYPD several times in days before killings
Giron, 47, entered her apt and opened fire four days after Smith’s last two complaints to police
Smith’s current boyfriend, Hewett DePass, a 43-year-old off-duty cop was also found badly at the scene
NYPD acknowledged Smith filed her first complaint with the NYPD on Sept. 10 after her car was keyed in Queens
She’d blamed ex-boyfriend Giron, 47, in a call to the domestic violence unit
Air National Guard Staff Sgt. Regan Smith [photo], called in three vandalism incidents linked to her ex Nelson Giron, the last two calls made just four days before he broke into her apt in Queens, NY, on Friday and opened fire
The NYPD twice bungled the complaints of a terrified Queens woman targeted by an obsessive ex-boyfriend in the days before he fatally shot her, police sources said Saturday.
The 31-year-old woman called 911 desperate for help, to no avail, as she was found dead of a gunshot wound to the head, her boyfriend, a 43-year-old off-duty Yonkers cop badly wounded in a Queens apartment early Friday, authorities say.
14-year Air National Guard veteran, Staff Sgt. Regan Smith, cited three vandalism incidents linked to spurned lover Nelson Giron, 47, the last two calls made just four days before he entered her apartment and opened fire.
Police acknowledged Smith, 31, filed her first complaint with the NYPD on Sept. 10 after her car was keyed in Queens, with the woman blaming ex-boyfriend Giron in a call directed to the precinct’s domestic violence unit.
One week later, she called to lodge another keying complaint, this one involving her new boyfriend’s vehicle, along with a second report that her apartment door had been damaged by someone fiercely banging on it.
Regan Smith [left], was shot and killed by her ex-boyfriend, Nelson Giron [right], at her home in Queens, NY, on Friday
Though Giron was the likely suspect in each instance, no one could prove he was involved, there were no eyewitnesses and nothing was done, said police sources.
Smith was dead from a gunshot to the head early Friday in a murder-suicide after Giron entered her apartment. – “The brass is not happy with how the 114 [Precinct] handled these complaints,” a police source later said.
Another friend of the victim familiar with the developments revealed that Giron twice pounded Smith’s apartment door to the point where it was badly damaged and called the victim repeatedly in the hours before killing her, wounding her current boyfriend and taking his own life.
“She was scared of him,” said friend Stephanie Mino. “They [police] did nothing and now she’s gone.”
Regan Smith on Friday allegedly screamed to the 911 dispatcher, “I’ve been shot by my boyfriend!” then the call dropped. She was later found dead, with a single shot to the head
Smith was in the apartment with her new boyfriend, off-duty Yonkers Police Officer Hewett DePass, 43, who survived the bloodshed with a gunshot wound to the shoulder and two stab wounds.
Police said Giron used a weapon belonging to DePass, who was recovering at Elmhurst Hospital Center. “He’s hanging in there,” said the cop’s dad.
NYPD Chief of Detectives Dermot Shea said the female caller, identified as Regan Smith, screamed to the 911 dispatcher, “I’ve been shot by my boyfriend!” then the call dropped. The line was left open though, and Shea said 911 dispatchers could hear loud noises.
Responding officers walked up to the apartment door and found it locked.
They could hear what appears to have been up to 10 shots, Shea said, and secured the perimeter as they called for backup and emergency services.
When authorities broke into the apartment, they found a 31-year-old woman, identified as Smith, dead of a gunshot wound to the head, her boyfriend.
A 47-year-old man thought to be an ex-boyfriend, Nelson Giron, was also found dead in the second-floor apartment on 77th Street, near the Ditmas-East Elmhurst border, before 7 a.m.
A 43-year-old off-duty Yonkers cop was also found badly wounded in a Queens. DePass a five-year NYPD veteran had a gunshot wound to the shoulder and two additional wounds to the back. He was expected to live.
A firearm that belonged to the DePass, who owns several weapons, according to police, was found near Giron’s body.
A GoFundMe page to raise money for Smith’s burial in her home state of Iowa detailed her 14-year career in the U.S. armed forces, during which she rose to the rank of staff sergeant. Cops were seen taking her two beloved French bulldogs out of her apartment after the shootings.
Smith moved to New York from the Corn Belt a decade ago, according to the fund-raising page. She joined the Air National Guard in 2004, and was currently assigned to the 105th Operations Group based in Newburgh.
Giron had a rap sheet including three New York arrests, with the most recent for using a Bronx stash house to hide 95 pounds of marijuana. He and four others were transporting the pot from Florida for sale in the borough, authorities charged.
Florida news reports indicate he was arrested in 2014 with more than $100,000 cash and anabolic steroids inside her car on Interstate 95.
Leave a Reply