A retired corrections officer working the security detail at a Woodside bowling alley shot two rowdy patrons early this morning, sending them to the hospital. Gerard Hourigan and Justin Donaghy, both 29 years old, were having cigarettes in the vestibule, flouting city non-smoking regulations when the guard, Michale Iavecchio, gave them the boot. But when he escorted them outside the friends attacked him, he says. Iavechhio—who because of this past employer had a license to carry a concealed weapon—reached for his .380 Ruger and fired two rounds, hitting one man in the stomach and the other in the chest.
Both Hourigan and Donaghy were taken to Elmhurst Hospital Center and are expected to survive, reports the Daily News. They are charged with menacing, but 54-year-old Iavechhio faces more serious charges—two counts of second-degree assault. No one from the AMF 34th Avenue Lanes in Queens would comment on the unexpected outburst of violence, but one regular customer said the incident came out of nowhere since, "It's a very safe place." An elderly neighbor said that Iavechhio, who was maybe acting on instinct when he shot down the troublemakers, is generally a good guy. "He's a wonderful person, he helps everybody," said Roma Ciofalo. "Everybody likes him."
