Family of Teen Win Rozario Sues NYC and NYPD Officersfor Wrongful Death and Civil Rights Violations
- BLH
- 2 days ago
- 8 min read
Updated: 2 days ago
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, June 23, 2025
MEDIA CONTACT
Tess Weiner, tess@justicecommittee.org, 224-213-5495
Akash Singh, akash@drumnyc.org, 347-901-2815
New York, NY – The family of 19-year-old Win Rozario, killed in his home in front of his mother and younger brother by two NYPD officers in 2024, filed a lawsuit today against the City of New York, NYPD Officer Salvatore Alongi, Officer Matthew Cianfrocco other NYPD who violated the rights of Win’s mother and younger brother directly after the killing.
The lawsuit, filed by Beldock, Levine & Hoffman LLP on behalf of Win’s mother Notan Eva Costa and brother Utsho Rozario, outlines the reckless actions of NYPD officers Salvatore Alongi and Matthew Cianfrocco that resulted in the killing of the Bangladeshi teen, within less than two minutes of the cops’ arrival to the apartment. Alongi & Cianfrocco violated multiple NYPD protocols, the lawsuit alleges, including those involving police use of force and response to individuals perceived to be in emotional distress; violated Win’s and his family’s civil rights; created and repeatedly escalated the crisis that resulted in Win’s death; and unnecessarily endangered the lives of the teen’s mother and younger brother in the process. The complaint states that Alongi & Cianfrocco’s “quick resort to force, repeated and loud shouting, and aggressive actions escalated and exacerbated the situation, making [Win] fear for his life, Eva fear for her son’s, and Utsho fear for his mother’s.”
Notan Eva Costa, Utsho Rozario and Win’s father Francis Rozario released the following statement upon the filing of the lawsuit: “It’s been over a year since Matthew Cianfrocco and Salvatore Alongi murdered Win, and nothing has happened - they still haven’t been fired, arrested or prosecuted. Cianfrocco & Alongi created a crisis and escalated at every turn, recklessly gunning Win down in our home in less than two minutes – and almost killing two of us too. We know this lawsuit won’t give us true justice but we’re fighting for Win with every tool we have. Mayor Adams has given us zero updates on the NYPD’s investigation and has done nothing since Win was murdered to protect New Yorkers from these dangerous police - he doesn’t seem to care about justice. We’re suing the city, Cianfrocco, Alongi and the other police whose names we still don’t know who murdered Win, forced us to be interrogated at the precinct when we should have been allowed to go in the ambulance with Win, and who refused to let us go back to our home for more than two days. We wish Win was still with us and pray that what we do helps prevent other families from having to go through this.”
Directly after Alongi & Cianfrocco shot Win at least five times, the lawsuit alleges that medical attention was haphazard and improper and multiple still-unidentified NYPD officers forcibly prevented Win’s mother and brother from going with Win when he was being transported to the hospital – instead unlawfully detaining them at the local precinct for questioning, without legal representation and without allowing them to retrieve essentials or additional clothing from their home in spite of the cold weather. Officers did not disclose that Win had died until after separately interrogating Win’s mother and brother. Following the interrogations, Win’s parents and brother were not permitted to return to their home for over two days – and only after Public Advocate Jumaane Williams’ office demanded that the NYPD allow the family to return home. Win’s family was not permitted to access their medications or even retrieve their cat, who was without food for days.
In total, the suit includes sixteen counts against the defendant officers and the city, including excessive force and unreasonable seizure, violations of substantive due process, and other violations of constitutional, civil and human rights. In addition to suing the city, Win Rozario’s family is calling on Mayor Adams and the NYPD to fire Officers Alongi and Cianfrocco, demanding that Attorney General Tish James prosecute them for all misconduct related to the killing and aftermath, and supporting calls to remove police from mental health encounters.
In support of the family’s demands, their attorney, David B. Rankin (he/him), Beldock Levine & Hoffman, LLP stated: “The NYPD must immediately fire Officers Salvatore Alongi and Matthew Cianfrocco. They shot and killed Win and nearly shot Notan Eva Costa and Utsho Rozario and they are still working, it is a disgrace. The officers are being paid nearly 200k a year by the people of New York, this has to stop. In no other job can you fail so spectacularly that someone is dead, you’re under investigation, and you’ve been sued yet you still cash a handsome paycheck. It must end, they must be fired.”
Luna Droubi (she/her), Beldock Levine & Hoffman, LLP stated: “Win Rozario should be alive today. His death could have been avoided if police officers are removed from mental health responses. This lawsuit demands justice and accountability for the failures of the City. The Rozario family deserves nothing less.”
Loyda Colon (they/them), executive director of the Justice Committee, who along with Desis Rising Up & Moving, has been working closely with Win’s family on their campaign to fire and prosecute Alongi and Cianfrocco for killing Win, stated: “From the moment Alongi and Cianfrocco got to Win’s home, they used derogatory language in relation to Win and then created a crisis when everything had been calm, resulting in their murder of this teenager who should be alive today, getting ready to celebrate his 21st birthday next month. Their reckless actions violated multiple provisions of the NYPD’s patrol guide. It’s outrageous that 15 months after Win was killed, Mayor Adams & the NYPD have refused to provide any information about their investigation to the family. Alongi and Cianfrocco should be fired and prosecuted immediately – they’re a danger to New Yorkers.”
Simran Thind, an organizer with Desis Rising Up & Moving (DRUM), who has also been working with family, added: “The reckless and vicious murder of Win Rozario by NYPD officers is something no family should ever have to experience. Not only did the officers come into the apartment deriding Win before they even encountered him, but then they mistreated the family by keeping them in a police car while officers made jokes and bantered, not notifying them of Win's death, questioning the family at the precinct, and locking them out of their apartment for days. All of these things indicate the rot at the heart of the NYPD, and this case is a manifestation of that culture.”
BACKGROUND
19-year-old Win Rozario was in his Ozone Park, Queens home when he was killed by NYPD Officers Salvatore Alongi and Matthew Cianfrocco on March 27, 2024, in front of his mother and younger brother. Officers Alongi and Cianfrocco created a crisis when they arrived and repeatedly escalated the situation, tasing and shooting Win at least five times within less than two minutes after entering the family’s apartment, unjustifiably killing the teen and risking the lives of Win’s mother and brother.
Immediately following the shooting, NYPD officers forced Ms. Costa and Utsho, Win’s mother and younger brother, to go to the precinct to be interrogated, preventing them from accompanying Win in the ambulance. Ms. Costa was questioned at length without counsel before being told her son had died, and 17-year-old Utsho, was also interrogated alone. NYPD officers blocked re-entry to the Rozario family’s home for more than two days, refusing the family’s demands to retrieve belongings, access medications, or even feed their cat.
For over a month after Win Rozario was killed, the NYPD blocked transparency, including refusing to release the names of the officers involved. Alongi and Cianfrocco’s names were first publicly identified by the Attorney General’s office when they released officer body camera footage on May 3, 2024. Mayor Adams’ first, and only, public statements regarding the killing were issued only after the Attorney General released body camera footage, over five weeks after Win was killed after being questioned by press. After being questioned by reporters, Mayor Adams falsely claimed that he had reached out to the family after the incident and that discipline would have to wait until after the Attorney General’s investigation concluded with a determination, which has never been accurate.
For the past year, Win Rozario’s family, along with the Justice Committee and Desis Rising Up & Moving, have called for the NYPD to fire - and for the NYS Attorney General to prosecute - NYPD officers Alongi and Cianfrocco. They are also calling for police to be removed from the city’s mental health response.
The Civilian Complaint Review Board (CCRB) and the New York State Attorney General are still investigating the killing. The family has received no updates from Mayor Adams or the NYPD about the NYPD’s mandated investigation. While mayors sometimes falsely claim that officer disciplinary processes must wait until after prosecutor determinations, there is no mandate to delay discipline. Francis Livoti, who killed Anthony Baez in 1994, was fired from the NYPD before federal prosecutors convicted Livoti for violating Baez’s civil rights.
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Beldock Levine & Hoffman LLP has been at the forefront of ground-breaking civil rights cases involving police misconduct, wrongful convictions, the First Amendment, and employment discrimination around the country for sixty years. The firm was responsible for the class action, Floyd v. City of New York, which successfully overturned the NYPD’s decade-long unconstitutional stop-and-frisk policy. Other notable representations include the family of Eric Garner, members of the Exonerated Five, George Whitmore, and Rubin “Hurricane” Carter. Recently, BLH represented the family of Nicholas Feliciano, a young man who attempted suicide while under watch in a Rikers Island holding cell as correction officers stood by. Sixty years after its formation, BLH remains a force for justice, accountability, and social progress. With decades of impact behind it and critical cases underway, the firm is dedicated to using the law as a tool for change—advocating for individuals, confronting systems of abuse, and shaping a more just and equitable future.
About the Justice Committee: Since the 1980s, the Justice Committee (JC) has been dedicated to building a movement against police violence and systemic racism in New York City. The heart of our work is organizing and uplifting the leadership of families who have lost loved ones to the police and survivors of police violence. We empower our community to deter police violence, hold law enforcement accountable, and build people-led community safety through grassroots organizing campaigns, community empowerment, political education, our CopWatch program, and by developing safety mechanisms and projects that decrease reliance on police. By building solidarity with other anti-racist, immigrant and people of color-led organizations, the Justice Committee seeks to contribute to a broad-based movement for racial, social, and economic justice.
About Desis Rising Up and Moving: DRUM - Desis Rising Up and Moving is a multigenerational, membership led organization of low-wage South Asian and Indo-Caribbean immigrants, workers and youth in New York City. Founded in 2000, DRUM has mobilized and built the leadership of thousands of low-income, South Asian and Indo-Caribbean immigrants to lead social and policy change that impacts their own lives- from immigrant rights to education reform, racial justice, and worker’s justice. Our membership of over 5,000 adults, youth, and families is multigenerational and represents the diaspora of the South Asian communities – Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Guyana, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Trinidad & Tobago, and beyond. In over a decade, we have built a unique model of South Asian and Indo-Caribbean undocumented workers, women, and youth led organizing for rights and justice from the local to the global rooted in base building, leadership development, running short and long term campaigns to reform policies on all levels, strong cross-community alliances locally and nationally, and building democratic and mass participatory spaces.
Contact:
Tess at tess@justicecommittee.org for any inquiries.
