Man accused of stabbing FDNY lieutenant arraigned on murder charge
Oct. 6, 2022, 9:01 a.m.
Veteran emergency medical worker Alison Russo-Elling was laid to rest Wednesday on Long Island.
The Astoria man accused of the unprovoked killing of a veteran emergency medical worker was arraigned on murder and weapons charges in New York Supreme Court in Queens, Thursday morning.
If convicted, 34-year-old Peter Zisopoulos could spend the rest of his life in prison for the murder of Captain Alison Russo-Elling.
He was arrested near the scene of the homicide after he was identified by witnesses on Sept. 29. He fled his third-floor apartment nearby and barricaded himself inside, police and prosecutors said. Hostage negotiators eventually helped broker his arrest.
Officials said Russo-Elling, a 61-year-old just a few months shy of retirement, was on duty near the Steinway Street EMS station where she was stationed when she was stabbed to death. She lived on Long Island and is survived by her daughter and parents.
Zisopoulos had no prior arrests in New York City, an NYPD spokesperson confirmed. His arraignment was postponed last week for a hospital evaluation, the New York Times reported.
Zisopoulos appeared virtually in court Thursday morning from Bellevue Hospital before Judge Ushir Pandit-Durant, according to Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz.
Russo-Elling was laid to rest at a ceremony in Commack on Long Island on Wednesday. The 24-year veteran started as an EMT, and worked her way up to paramedic and then lieutenant. She was a first responder at the World Trade Center on 9/11, officials said.
The @NYPDHighway Patrol was honored to join the motorcade that led @FDNY EMS Hero Captain Alison Russo to her final resting place. The women and men of @NYPDNews will continue to keep the family, friends and colleagues of this incredible public servant in their prayers. 🙏 pic.twitter.com/oesxxuwojl
— Edward A. Caban (@NYPDFIRSTDEP) October 6, 2022
Hundreds of attendees gathered to mourn her, including Mayor Eric Adams and Acting Fire Commissioner Laura Kavanagh. Kavanagh promoted her posthumously to captain.
At the Wednesday ceremony, Russo-Elling’s father gave an unplanned speech decrying his daughter’s killer, the New York Post reported.
“That man murdered my daughter and she would be the first one to come to his aid if he ever needed help,” Frank Fuoco said, according to the Post. “He killed her and tore a hole in our hearts and all her colleagues.”
Russo-Elling’s daughter Danielle Fuoco implored mourners not to dwell on the tragedy of her death, but to celebrate her life.
“Any hate in your heart created from this sudden calamity, I need you to remove that. I need you to replace it with love,” she said, according to the Post. “Do not let your thoughts be clouded by this act of sudden trauma. You need to replace it with honoring my mother for the hero that she was.”