POUGHKEEPSIE – Town of Pawling resident Giuseppe Vassallo, 43, was arraigned on felony murder charges in Dutchess County Court on Thursday morning. Vassallo was originally charged with attempted murder for a March altercation at his residence in which he stabbed 42-year-old Pawling resident Nathaniel Vieira. The victim succumbed to his injuries in a Connecticut hospital three weeks later and the charge against Vassallo was upgraded to murder.
Two men had initially been charged with attempted murder on March 2. Vassallo, police said, had been assisted by 27-year-old John “Jack” Sorell in the attack on Vieira that led to his death. Despite Sorell having fired an assault-style rifle in the direction of the victim that day, barely missing him, Vassallo is the only one charged with murder after stabbing the victim several times in the torso with a “large hunting-style knife,” according to the prosecutor.
The initial Mid Hudson News coverage of the altercation in Pawling can be found here.
A grand jury indicted Vassallo last month on the felony charges of murder, attempted murder, and conspiracy. Vassallo’s arraignment before Dutchess County Court Judge Jessica Segal drew a substantial number of the victim’s associates, said to be linked to one or more motorcycle clubs, to the courthouse causing a line to form up the street as people waited to pass through court security.
The crowd overflowed Judge Segal’s courtroom and many attendees were forced to wait in the hallway outside, hoping to catch a glimpse of the accused murderer. The defendant was arraigned and remanded back to the Dutchess County Jail after entering a plea of not guilty.
Both Vassallo and Sorell have been in jail since their arrests on March 2, 2024.
