Two wedding crushers were arrested early Tuesday for a bizarre incident in which a gun accidentally discharged during a reception at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in June.
Vladimir Gotlibovsky, 43, of Brooklyn, was charged with six counts of misdemeanor assault, illegal weapons possession and evidence tampering for trying to cover up the crime. Felix Gotlibovsky, 52, also of Brooklyn, was charged with weapons possession and evidence tampering.
SHOOTER AT WALDORF ASTORIA WEDDING ACCIDENTALLY FIRED GUN BEFORE, HITTING HIMSELF: POLICE
The siblings turned themselves in to detectives at the Midtown North Precinct stationhouse early Tuesday. They were arraigned in Manhattan Criminal Court later in the day and pleaded not guilty.
Adding to their woes, Manhattan prosecutor Joshua Steinglass disclosed Tuesday during the arraignment that the brothers are also under investigation for international liquor smuggling.
On June 13, Anna Goldshmidt and Elan Stratt were readying for their dream wedding at the famed hotel when the younger Gotlibovsky’s licensed 9-milimeter semi-automatic Ruger pistol went off in his pocket. Shrapnel from the bullet grazed a woman in the head and wounded two other people. The ritzy reception was cancelled by the hotel after the chaos.
After the shooting, in a hotel bathroom, Gotlibovsky handed the gun covertly to his brother, who is not licensed to carry a weapon. Felix gave the gun to his mother, who then gave it to Vladimir’s wife. Later that evening, NYPD detectives recovered the firearm from Vladimir Gotlibovsky’s home. They also took his ammunition, two empty gun boxes, a holster, and his permit.
Shortly after the incident, court papers show, Vladimir told police, “It wasn’t me. I’m not a criminal. I ripped my pants getting out of the cab.”
The couple’s lawyer, David Jaroslawicz, said the arrests don’t surprise him.
“I knew the police were investigating,” he told the Daily News Tuesday.
“The gun was in his pocket, not in a holster,” he said. “It’s a little reckless to keep a gun in your pocket and not in a holster and bring it to a wedding. And after it went off they didn’t say sorry. They tried to hide the gun. When the gun disappeared, and no one could find it, that created havoc.”
The couple’s civil lawsuit for extreme emotional distress, mental anguish and severe embarrassment, is ongoing against the brothers, he said.
Goldshmidt has been seeking therapy since the disastrous day, her lawyer said. “What was to be the happiest day of her life turned into a disaster,” Jaroslawicz said.
Arthur Gershfeld, Gotlibovsky’s lawyer, said in court: “First and foremost I’m quite shocked that the top charge is a possession of a weapon in the second degree when my client has a license.”
Gershfeld went on to point out that his client has been in the country for 39 years, has no criminal record, has been married for 25 years, has two children, owns his own residence and his own business.
Steinglass pointed out that Vladimir Gotlibovsky made himself guilty once he handed his brother the weapon inside the Waldorf hotel.
“Though the defendant has a carry permit … When he gave the gun to his brother he became an accessory to his brother’s unlawful possession, which is why he’s filed as an accomplice,” Steinglass said.
“I still believe that this is overcharged,” Gershfeld said.
The brothers were released on their own recognizance and had to surrender their passports. They are expected to post a $25,000 bail Wednesday. The next court date is Feb. 25, 2016.
