Queens Chronicle
By Peter C. Mastrosimone
The man who murdered a hero officer in the FDNY’s Emergency Medical Services was sentenced Monday to 25 years to life for the vicious, unprovoked knife attack, the Queens District Attorney’s Office said.
Capt. Alison Russo was slain Sept. 29, 2022, at the corner of 20th Avenue and 41st Street in Astoria, just steps from her base at EMS Station 49. Then a lieutenant, whose name also has been reported as Russo-Elling, she was standing on the sidewalk when her killer rushed her and stabbed her repeatedly with a kitchen knife. He then went to his nearby apartment, where police arrested him.
“New York will always remember FDNY EMS Captain Alison Russo as a hero, who — for 24 years — served our city and saved countless lives,” District Attorney Melinda Katz said in a prepared statement. “In the dark days after September 11, she worked in search and recovery efforts in Lower Manhattan. Nothing will bring Captain Russo back, but we hope that the pain and grief over her loss will lessen with today’s sentencing. This defendant will now serve 25 years to life in prison for this brutal and senseless crime.”
The killer is Peter Zisopoulos, 37.