Gunman Who Shot UWS Ex-Boss Gets Prison Sentence: Prosecutors

UPPER WEST SIDE, NY — A man was sentenced to 15 years in state prison on Thursday for shooting his former boss on the Upper West Side in a broad daylight attack that spilled onto a busy city street, prosecutors said.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said Eduardo Diaz, 44, had been fired months before the shooting and sent threatening text messages to his former employer before the attack.

On the morning of Nov. 7, 2024, around 9:15 a.m., Diaz went to his former workplace — Lincoln Business Machines, an IT support and computer repair service shop — near West 68th Street and Columbus Avenue, where he confronted the 47-year-old victim.

During the initial encounter, Diaz pulled out a gun and attempted to fire, but the weapon jammed, according to court records.

The confrontation then moved onto the street near West 69th Street and Columbus Avenue, where Diaz opened fire, striking the victim multiple times in the ankle, hip and shoulder, Bragg said. Prosecutors said Diaz continued shooting as the man lay on the ground.

The victim was taken to Mount Sinai Morningside, where he remained for several days, Bragg said.

After the shooting, Diaz fled into the 72nd Street subway station near Central Park West and escaped through the tunnels, Bragg said. He was arrested the following day at his home in Queens, where police recovered a firearm, ammunition and clothing linked to the attack, Bragg said.

"Eduardo Diaz has been held accountable for committing a vicious shooting against his former boss which recklessly spilled onto a public city street," Bragg said. "This attack significantly injured the victim who is still recovering to this day."

Diaz was sentenced in the New York State Supreme Court after pleading guilty to attempted assault in the first degree in October.

"We will not tolerate the use of firearms to harm fellow New Yorkers," Bragg said.

For questions, email Miranda.Levingston@Patch.com.

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