Guy Rivera gets 115 years to life for killing NYPD Detective Jonathan Diller

Guy Rivera will spend the rest of his life behind bars after a Queens judge sentenced him to 115 years to life for the killing of NYPD officer Jonathan Diller and the attempted murder of Sgt. Sasha Rosen. The punishment, imposed by Queens Supreme Court Justice Michael Aloise, came after Rivera’s April 1 conviction on aggravated manslaughter in the first degree, attempted murder in the first degree, and two weapons charges.

The sentence breaks down into three 25-years-to-life terms for aggravated manslaughter and the two weapons counts, plus 40 years to life for attempted murder, all running consecutively. In practical terms, it leaves Rivera with no realistic path out of prison. Justice Aloise told Diller’s family that Rivera would die in prison, a blunt ending to a case that has gripped the NYPD and the wider city since the shooting.

The case began during a traffic stop in Far Rockaway on March 25, 2024, around 5:40 p.m., near 19-19 Mott Avenue, after police spotted a Kia Soul parked in a bus lane. Diller, then serving with the Queens North Community Response Team and not yet posthumously promoted to detective, approached the passenger side and repeatedly asked Rivera to get out of the vehicle. A struggle followed. Diller’s partner fired back and struck Rivera in the back. Rivera was shot on scene and taken to the hospital, while Diller was rushed to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center in critical condition and later died.

Jurors rejected the top murder count, finding Rivera not guilty of first-degree murder, but the remaining convictions still exposed him to a sentence that amounts to a life term. Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said the punishment reflects both the loss of Jonathan Diller and the attempted killing of Sasha Rosen, and that Rivera will never again be free to endanger New York City streets.

The sentencing hearing drew a heavy turnout of uniformed officers and family members, forcing the court to move the proceeding to the largest courtroom in Kew Gardens. Stephanie Diller and Fran Diller delivered emotional victim-impact statements, underscoring what this case has cost a young family. Stephanie Diller said their son, Ryan, lost his father. The courtroom scene made one thing plain: the legal case is over, but for the Diller family, the loss will remain open. Former President Donald Trump had already turned Diller’s wake in Massapequa Park into a public law-and-order moment, and this sentence now closes the criminal chapter with an unmistakable finality.