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Friday, February 19, 2021
Vol. 70, No. 8
N E W H Y D E PA R K
SPECIAL OCCASIONS
PORT DOC NAMED TO BIDEN PANEL
CUOMO ADMITS WITHHOLDING NURSING HOME DATA
PAGES 19-21
PAGE 3
PAGE 7
Man held in death of Nicki Minaj’s dad
H E R R I C K S H E R I TA G E
Robert Maraj allegedly struck by car in Mineola on Friday night BY R OB E RT PE L A E Z A 70-year-old Mineola man was arrested on Wednesday and faces felony charges in connection with the death of Robert Maraj, the father of rapper Nicki Minaj. Maraj died on Saturday after Charles Polevich of 165 Roselle St. in Mineola allegedly hit Maraj with his white 1992 Volvo station wagon on Roslyn Road in Mineola, according to the Nassau County Police Department. Officials said the 64-year-old Maraj was hit on Friday after 6 p.m. while walking through the intersection of Roslyn Road and Raff Avenue. Officials said Polevich initially stopped after hitting Maraj before he fled the scene and left Maraj on the side of the road. Maraj was taken to a local hospital, where he was initially listed in critical condition, according to the police. Health officials declared Maraj
dead on Saturday. Multiple news outlets reached out to Minaj for comment unsuccessfully, but representatives of the rapper confirmed the death of her father. In several earlier interviews, Minaj, whose real name is Onika Tanya Maraj, said her father displayed various forms of abuse, ranging from drugs and alcohol to setting her childhood house on fire while her mother was still inside in Jamaica, Queens. “It’s the price you pay when you abuse drugs and alcohol,” Minaj said in a 2010 Rolling Stone interview. “Maybe one day your daughter will be famous and talk to every magazine about it, so think about that, dads out there who want to be crazy.” In a 2015 interview with The New York Times, Minaj said she was not physically abused by her father but said his actions caused Continued on Page 28
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE HERRICKS SCHOOL DISTRICT
Denton Avenue students created Chinese Dragons as part of the Heritage Week throughout the Herricks School District.
Vaccine scramble as eligibility expands BY R OB E RT PELAEZ
to scramble for inoculations and elected officials continue their pleas to the state for more Expanded eligibility for doses. Gov. Andrew Cuomo the coronavirus vaccine in New York began on Sunday, warned New Yorkers that the but Long Islanders continue demand for appointments
would be high last week. On Tuesday, Cuomo said that nearly 10,000 appointments were made per hour on Sunday, beginning as early as 8 a.m. “The State’s vaccination Continued on Page 27
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