ARIZ. KEEPS ‘KILLER’
Judge rejects Bragg on Soho-slay extradite
In a major blow to Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, an Arizona judge said Monday that the brute accused of viciously beating a Queens mom to death inside a Soho hotel room will remain in her jurisdiction and won’t be extradited to the Big Apple to face murder charges.
Court Commissioner Barbara Spencer said Raad Almansoori, 26, will stay in Arizona to stand trial for attempted murder, dashing Bragg’s hopes of getting the accused killer back to Manhattan over the objections of Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell, KSAZ-TV reported.
The Manhattan prosecutors can now petition Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs to intervene.
“Nothing can happen on the fugitive case other than there could be what’s called a governor’s directive, which is the document that would hold you instead of the governor’s warrant or you would choose to sign a waiver,” Spencer told Almansoori in court.
Almansoori, the only suspect in the Feb. 7 beating death of 38-yearold Denisse Oleas-Arancibia at the Soho 54 Hotel, fled to Arizona after the slaying and faces attempted murder charges for attacking two women there days later.
Bragg and Mitchell have since been embroiled in a legal scuffle over who would get the first shot at Almansoori — with Manhattan prosecutors claiming their murder case took precedence over the lesser charges of attempted murder.
“Seeking justice for victims and survivors is our priority at the Manhattan D.A.’s Office,” a spokesperson for Bragg said in a statement.
“We do not stand on ceremony but prioritize the integrity of the process,” the spokesperson said. “We are proceeding as we do in each and every case involving an out-of-state arrest: Following the facts and the law to ensure justice is served.”
‘Deadly crime spree’
Bragg’s office has argued that extradition decisions between “professional” prosecutors in other states are typically worked out with simple phone calls — and that murder cases routinely take precedence over lesser charges.
But Mitchell said last month that she would keep Almansoori in her county, citing Bragg’s reputation as a soft-on-crime prosecutor.
Almansoori can still waive his right to fight extradition to New York but refused to do so Monday.
Police in Arizona said he confessed to the New York slaying as well as two assaults on women in Phoenix and Surprise during a crazed two-day crime spree.
Almansoori, who was indicted last week in the Arizona cases, is charged with carjacking and stabbing a woman in Phoenix on Feb. 17 and attacking and sexually assaulting another woman the following day at a McDonald’s where she worked.
He was nabbed by cops in the parking garage of a Scottsdale mall later on Feb. 18.
He is due back in court on March 25, KSAZ reported.