The Queens senior citizen who killed a would-be mugger during an early morning shooting reported to prison Wednesday to serve a four-year sentence for criminal weapons possession.
Former Kew Gardens resident Charles Foehner was locked up at the Eric M Taylor Center in the Bronx for his felony gun charges stemming from the May 31, 2023, shooting, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced on Wednesday.
The then-65-year-old was returning to his Queens Avenue apartment at around 2 a.m. after buying a pack of cigarettes when he was confronted by a menacing Cody Gonzalez.
Gonzalez, 32, demanded that Foehner hand over a cigarette and his phone.
The senior citizen, armed with a revolver, pulled the gun out and pointed it at the ground in an attempt to scare off the vagrant.
Gonzalez, who had a long list of previous arrests and a history of mental illness, didn’t take the hint and lunged at Foehner with what the armed citizen believed was a knife, but was later ruled to be a pen.
In a defensive act, Foehner fired a shot, fatally striking Gonzalez.
“He kept coming closer and clearly he was going to attack me,” Foehner told The Post in December.
“I didn’t want to hurt anyone. He left me no choice,” he said.
Building security cameras captured the entire shooting, as Foehner called 911 and cooperated with authorities.
Foehner was never charged with Gonzalez’s death but during the investigation into the shooting, detectives discovered an “arsenal” of unregistered rifles, handguns, ammo and bulletproof vests in his Queens apartment.
The day after the shooting, Foehner was arrested and charged with criminal possession of a weapon.
Investigators uncovered 26 unlicensed and unregistered weapons, 13,000 rounds of ammunition and 152 large capacity feeding devices inside Foehner’s home, Katz said.
Foehner’s arsenal
- Two .38-caliber Smith and Wesson pistols
- Four .357-caliber Smith and Wesson revolvers
- Three 7.62 mm x 39 Norinco rifles
- Two 12-gauge Mossberg shotguns
- One .38-caliber Cobra revolver
- One .32-caliber Harrington and Richardson revolver
- One .32-caliber Beretta pistol
- One .22-caliber Browning pistol
- One .25-caliber Precision Small Parts pistol
- One 9 mm Glock pistol
- One .45-caliber Glock pistol
- One .380 Auto Caliber Norinco pistol
- One .45-caliber Colt pistol
- One .22-caliber Ruger rifle
- One 30 Carbine Caliber Winchester rifle
- One 30-06 Ruger rifle
- One 5.56 x 45 mm caliber semi-automatic Norinco assault rifle
- One .357-caliber Magnum Colt
- 13,074 rounds of ammunition
- 152 large capacity feeding devices, 10 of which were loaded
- Two bulletproof vests
- One inoperable pistol
Katz’s office shared photos of the recovered weapons stockpile Foehner says he collected over time, describing himself as a lifelong gun enthusiast and a doomsday prepper.
“Until that night, I never pointed a gun at anybody. I never had to. I’m not a gun bully … I don’t want power over anyone,” Foehner said, adding, “I believe in the social contract.”
The retired doorman, who moved to Pennsylvania after the shooting, made a deal with prosecutors and pleaded guilty to one count of criminal weapons in November.
On Wednesday, Queens Supreme Court Justice Toni Cimino officially sentenced Foehner to four years in prison.
After his sentence, Foehner will serve five years of post-release supervision.
He used his last weeks of freedom visiting friends and family and spending time with his devoted wife, Jenny Foehner-Speed, and his 8-year-old dog, Biscuit, who was recently diagnosed with cancer.
His one objective while behind bars is to “survive” and maybe learn how to weld and become a tutor.
Foehner has taken responsibility for the shooting and believes he should have been punished but not jailed.
“Whatever the circumstances are, a guy is dead because of me. Maybe I should have taken the beating [that night], but who knows where the beating stops,” he said
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