A man stabbed during a knife fight with a stranger on a Queens street later died — but his accused killer has only been charged with menacing because he was acting in self-defense, police said Wednesday.
Gerard Moreno, 30, died Saturday at Jamaica Hospital from stab wounds he suffered Jan. 27 during an 8:40 p.m. clash on Queens Blvd. near 70th Road in Forest Hills, cops said.
On Tuesday, three days after Moreno died, cops charged 27-year-old Nicholas Loiacono with menacing and attempted weapon possession. He has no prior arrest record.
Police said Loiacono, who lives in Massapequa, LI, was walking down the street when he made a comment to Moreno, who appeared to be acting up. The comment sparked an argument that turned physical, with both men pulling out sharp objects.
Moreno was stabbed in the chest and Loiacono ran off, police said. Loiacono later returned to the scene but was not charged at that time.
Moreno had arrests on his record dating back to at least 2001, when he was charged with robbery. He was paroled in April 2019 after serving more than two years in state prison for weapon possession.