Central Avenue

     Nathaniel Wilson   Samuel Blackshear Jennifer Urvizu-Hanlon

Thursday's incident on Central Avenue that left one man dead of a knife attack and another man wounded by a gunshot may have stemmed from a series of confrontations between two groups of people over prior days, District Attorney Lawrence Friedman indicated during a press conference in the Genesee County Court building this afternoon.

The DA's Office announced the indictments of three individuals allegedly involved.

The confrontations appear to have been personal in nature and not gang or drug related, Friedman said.

"There had been confrontations I believe prior to this, maybe some physical violence between people prior to this or threats," Friedman said. "And, as I say, it just seemed to be a situation that was brewing between these groups."

He described the conflict as personal in nature but had no information to elaborate on regarding what may have led to the deadly encounter on Central between Nathaniel D. Wilson Jr., Samuel Blackshear, and Terry J. Toote.

The 30-year-old Wilson is accused of stabbing Toote, 41, to death and has been indicted by a Genesee County Grand Jury on counts of murder in the second degree, which carries a maximum prison term of 25 years to life, and criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree.

The man who allegedly shot Wilson in the leg, 17-year-old Blackshear, is indicted on counts of attempted assault in the first degree, assault in the second degree, and two counts of criminal possession in the second degree.

Blackshear is facing up to 15 years in prison.

The woman who is accused of handing over her handgun, which she was licensed to carry, 48-year-old Jennifer Urvizu-Hanlon, owner of the La Mexicana store in the Valu Plaza, is indicted on two charges of criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree.

The indictment accuses her of being an accessory to Blackshear's possession of the loaded firearm.

She is facing up to 15 years in prison.

Wilson's indictment also includes the district attorney's Special Information, which is a listing of Wilson's prior convictions. They are:

• Attempted criminal possession of a weapon, 3rd. He possessed a weapon in the Genesee County Jail on May 18, 2016.
• Attempted to knowingly make or possess dangerous contraband in prison, 1st. He possessed contraband in prison in Washington County on Sept. 10, 2010.
• Escape, 3rd. He escaped custody in the Town of Le Roy on Dec. 5, 2005.
• Menacing, 3rd. He menaced an individual Feb. 22, 2006, in the City of Batavia.
• Burglary, 3rd. He broke into a building Oct. 17, 2005.
• Attempted assault, 2nd. He attempted to stab another person Oct. 17, 2005. (See previous story)

All three defendants are being held without bail. They will be arraigned in County Court on June 5.

Friedman said he does not anticipate any further arrests related to this specific incident. 

There were numerous people present at the incident, perhaps more than a dozen, Friedman said, but he said he doesn't know what brought them there, though there had been people hanging out in the area for hours before the attack, or how long those involved were at that location prior to the stabbing.

Friedman commended the work of the law enforcement agencies involved, particularly the Batavia PD and Sheriff's Office, whose detectives had numerous people to interview to help prepare for the presentation of the case to the grand jury.

Top photo: District Attorney Lawrence Friedman, First Assistant DA Melissa Cianfrini, Batavia PD Chief Shawn Heubusch.

One of four men allegedly involved in a home-invasion burglary in October on Central Avenue, Batavia, was supposed to be sentenced on a guilty plea in that case, but it turns out there is a disagreement between the attorneys in the case on what exactly was in the plea deal given to Daniel J. Gilbert.

At the start of the hearing, District Attorney Lawrence Friedman told Judge Charles Zambito that the agreed upon sentence was a straight-up five years in prison (a determinate sentence).

Zambito turned to defense attorney Thomas Burns and asked, "is that your understanding?"

"That's not accurate," Burns said. "That's not our position at all."

Zambito asked if Burns wished to discuss the plea on the record and Burns said he did not, so Zambito called for a recess and met with the attorneys in chambers.

When he returned he said that Burns would be able to file a position paper with supporting citations, and Friedman would be given a chance to answer.  Because of trial schedules and vacation schedules, Gilbert won't be back in county court for a hearing on the plea, and possible sentencing, until 11 a.m. on June 20.

Asked for more information outside of court on the particulars of the dispute, Friedman said he couldn't discuss it.

The cases for the other defendants, Oliver Thomas, Marquis Saddler and Adante Davis, are still pending.

UPDATE 3:31 p.m. to clarify family information.

A family of three has been displaced and is being helped by the Red Cross after a structure fire early Sunday morning heavily damaged their kitchen and another room at 33 Central Ave., Batavia.

The fire started, said City Fire Chief Jim Maxwell, after a resident left cooking oil unattended while it heated. She intended to make chicken wings.

The fire was reported at 12:42 a.m.

The biggest concern, Maxwell said, was that the resident said her daughter may have been trapped in an upstairs bedroom.

Firefighters conducted two searches of the residence and were unable to locate the 16-year-old.

It turned out she was not home and was located and found safe a short time later.

All Batavia platoons were dispatched to the fire, with a total of 20 firefighters responding. No mutual aid from neighboring departments was requested. The fire department was back in service at 3:30 a.m.

The fire did extensive damage to the kitchen and an adjoining room. The structural damage was significant enough to require a code enforcement officer to condemn the house.

The fire caused $20,000 in damage.

Brycea Bolster and her family have been relocated to a local hotel for three days.

They also had three cats and a dog. The pets are all safe.

The property owner is Deborah Ruhland.

An argument in a back yard on Central Avenue over clothes led to two people being charged with harassment, 2nd, including one woman accused of striking a man with a baseball bat.

Arrested and released on appearance tickets were Paul C. Wapniewski, 55, of 410 Ellicott St., Batavia, and Cheryl M. Lyons, 45, of 14 Vine St. Batavia.

Lyons is accused of hitting Wapniewski with the bat after Wapniewski allegedly shoved Lyons' mother.

The arguement broke out around 7 p.m., Saturday.

Officer Marc Lawrence investigated the incident.

A 22-year-old Batavia resident was hospitalized early this morning after being struck by a hit-and-run driver on Central Avenue in the city.

Police are asking people with information about the car and driver to call 345-6350.

Luis A. Mercado was listed this morning in stable condition at Strong Memorial Hospital.

At about 1:36 a.m., Mercardo was walking on Central when he was struck by a white sedan.

The car reportedly has a loud exhaust and is possibly a Dodge Stratus. It sustained front end damage and most likely a broken windshield.