Roosevelt man sentenced in beating death behind Chuck E. Cheese restaurant in Hempstead

A Nassau County judge sentenced a Roosevelt man to 25 years to life in prison on Wednesday for beating another man to death with his bare hands behind the Hempstead Chuck E. Cheese during a robbery in 2022.

Dennis "Midnight" Ray, 64, accepted no responsibility during the morning hearing for his role in the killing of 59-year-old Jose Osma, of Copiague, with the help of co-defendant Tyrell "Country" Guthrie behind the children’s restaurant at 162 Fulton Ave. on April 22, 2022 around 11 p.m.

When asked if he had anything to say, Ray went on talking for five minutes. He said he was innocent, and talked about the weakness of the evidence against him, his co-defendant’s role in the crime, and lies he said the key witness in the trial told on the witness stand. He also impugned the reputation of the victim, whose two adult children were in the courtroom.

"I was railroaded the whole way," Ray said. "First of all, I’m innocent."

Ray also claimed that he risked his own safety to save Osma from Guthrie.

His defense attorney said that he would appeal the jury verdict.

Osma, who had struggled with addiction, went behind the Chuck E. Cheese where the garbage bins are kept with a woman he knew to take illegal drugs, prosecutors said.

While they were there, the two other men came up on either side of Osma and attacked him, beating him into unconsciousness and then leaving him to die by the dumpster, according to court testimony.

Nassau County prosecutor Stefanie Palma called Ray’s behavior "unconscionable, disgraceful and evil." She said that he had admitted returning to the scene by the garbage to beat Osma again while he lay unconscious and defenseless on the ground.

The prosecutor played recordings at trial of Ray laughing and joking with others about beating Osma.

Guthrie pleaded guilty to manslaughter in 2023 and is currently serving an 18-year sentence in state prison.

Prosecutors said the victim lay behind the Chuck E. Cheese for hours and was eventually discovered by passersby at 6:30 a.m. and taken to NYU Langone Hospital — Long Island without identification, while his children looked for him.

When they found him, he was listed as a John Doe because his wallet and cellphone had been stolen, prosecutors said.

Osma underwent five brain surgeries, falling in and out of a coma over a year. He was paralyzed on his left side and had part of his skull removed because of his injuries, according to the district attorney.

His son, Brian, and daughter, Angelly, said that they sat vigil by his bedside hoping that he would return to consciousness, but a year after the attack, on April 30, 2023, he died from his injuries.

"Seeing someone you love suffer like that is something no one should ever have to experience," Angelly Osma told the court. "Losing him has left a pain in my heart that will never go away."