Man pleads not guilty to murder

Alleged victim was found severely beaten in Albany’s Lincoln Park

A 27-year-old city man pleaded not guilty to murder on Friday, eight months after he allegedly beat a man so badly he later died.

Prosecutors believe that on Sept. 19, 2021, Nicholas Lewis assaulted Thai Nguyen, 64, in Lincoln Park. City police later found Nguyen with severe facial and head injuries, including missing teeth and fractures, in the bushes and transported him to Albany Medical Center Hospital.

Nguyen died three months later, becoming the city’s 18th homicide of the year. City police did not release the news of his death until last month when Lewis was initially charged.

The assault that night was part of a streak of robberies and assaults city police said Lewis committed that night.

Prosecutors also consolidated seven other open cases against Lewis into a single indictment. The charges all date to Sept. 4 and 19, 2021.

The seven charges range from harassment, a violationlevel charge, to attempted murder of another man.

Lewis is scheduled to reappear in court on June 17, 2022.