Once convicted in Staten Island delivery-driver stabbing, man headed back to prison in similar incident

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — A burglary attempt that turned into an alleged stabbing in Stapleton has earned a Mariners Harbor man a trip back to prison.

On Wednesday, Travis Toonda, 35, of Letty Court, pleaded guilty in state Supreme Court, St. George, to third-degree attempted criminal possession of a weapon, in connection with the Sept. 22 incident.

In exchange for his plea, he is scheduled to be sentenced June 20 by Judge Alexander B. Jeong to two to four years in prison.

A Manhattan-based attorney representing the defendant did not return a request for comment this week.

Toonda previously was convicted of attempted assault in a similar incident on the borough’s South Shore, in which police said he stabbed a delivery driver.

Victim stabbed in the chest

Prosecutors said it was around 12 a.m. near the intersection of Beach and Water streets in Stapleton, when Toonda approached a 47-year-old man and asked for money.

When the man refused, Toonda stabbed him in the chest, according to a criminal complaint.

Responding NYPD officers apprehended the defendant, while the victim was taken by ambulance to a nearby hospital for treatment, prosecutors said.

At the time of his arrest, Toonda was found in possession of Xanax pills, court documents alleged.

Delivery driver attacked

In February 2022, Toonda was charged in the alleged stabbing of a delivery driver in Oakwood.

It was around 10:20 p.m. when police responded to an assault in progress near Hylan Boulevard and Fairbanks Avenue, police said at the time.

The victim, a 28-year-old man, told officers his attacker approached him and allegedly stated “can’t help you,” then, stabbed him in the abdomen. The motive for the attack wasn’t clear at the time.

The victim was transported to Staten Island University Hospital, Ocean Breeze, in stable condition.

‘Swift and heroic actions’: D.A.

Following Toonda’s most recent guilty plea, District Attorney Michael E. McMahon issued a statement that read in part:

“This defendant is no stranger to the criminal justice system, and it is our office’s commitment to ensure serious crimes are met with serious consequences.

“We want to extend our gratitude to the Emergency Medical Services workers and NYPD officers whose swift and heroic actions not only saved our victim’s life, but also ensured the defendant was quickly apprehended and held accountable for his crimes.

“We also want to thank our dutiful Assistant District Attorney Alva Prenga for her hard work and diligent efforts to ensure justice was secured in this case.”