After wake for NYPD Officer Jonathan Diller, thousands expected at Massapequa funeral Saturday

Lines of mourners continued to descend Friday on a Massapequa Park funeral home for the second day of the wake for fallen NYPD Officer Jonathan E. Diller, who was fatally shot Monday during a traffic stop in Queens.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams and Police Commissioner Edward Caban are among those who will eulogize Diller, 31, of Massapequa Park, Saturday at St. Rose of Lima R.C. Church in Massapequa before a crowd expected to include thousands of police officers, said the Rev. Michael Duffy, of the Cathedral of St. Agnes in Rockville Centre.

Duffy, who presided over the wedding of Diller and his widow, Stephanie, just a few years ago, will deliver the funeral’s homily, which will touch on the injustice of the loss of Diller, a three-year police department veteran and the father of a 1-year-old boy named Ryan.

“The city is mourning a cop, and the tens of thousands of police officers outside are mourning a brother in arms,” Duffy wrote in his homily, to be delivered Saturday. “But Stephanie and Ryan are mourning their everything.”

“Jon didn't need to make this sacrifice to prove how good and heroic he was to Stephanie and Ryan. They knew firsthand. … Monday just proved it to the world,” the pastor wrote.

Duffy said he was at the funeral home when ex-President Donald Trump visited Diller’s family Thursday.

“I was at the wake with the president yesterday after he met with the family and I asked him, ‘Mr. President, would you be willing to pray with us, with the family?’ And he said, ‘Yes.’ ”

Duffy said at the casket, Trump prayed with him and Stephanie Diller. “She [Stephanie Diller] introduced the president to her parents. There were about 200 people in the room and we all said an ‘Our Father’ and then after we did, the president turned around and looked at baby Ryan — and he kissed him on the forehead. … And the baby clapped his hands. It was all very moving.”

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Friday briefly attended the wake, met with Diller’s family and had a “brief, respectful conversation” inside the funeral home, officials who witnessed the exchange told Newsday. She left after about 10 minutes and was confronted by a man just outside the funeral home. The identify of the man was not clear, but officials said he was not a member of the Diller family.

“Gov. Hochul attended the wake today to mourn the loss of Officer Diller, offer her condolences and hear from his family and loved ones who are dealing with unimaginable grief,” Hochul spokesperson Avi Small said.

Diller died Monday after a suspect shot him during a traffic stop. Diller died “as a result of a penetrating gunshot wound of the abdomen, with injuries of his left common iliac vessels,” said Dr. Alex Williamson, of the New York City Office of Chief Medical Examiner, as cited by prosecutors in charging documents.

Queens prosecutors have charged Guy Rivera, 34, of Woodside, with first- and second-degree murder and other charges in Diller’s slaying.

Rivera fired one shot at Diller while sitting in the passenger seat of a 2016 Kia Soul after the two engaged in a tug-of-war over the suspect's car door during a traffic stop that quickly escalated into a deadly encounter, according to police statements and charging documents.

Diller eventually got the door open and directed Rivera to remove his hands from his sweatshirt pockets, police said. Rivera then fired one shot, striking Diller in the abdomen under his bullet-resistant vest, a police official said. Police said Diller continued to try to disarm the shooter, even after he was shot.

After fatally shooting Diller, Rivera aimed his gun at NYPD Sgt. Sasha Rosen, who was with Diller, Queens prosecutors said. Rosen used his hand to direct the gun away from his body as Rivera “continued to attempt to move the barrel of the firearm back towards Sergeant Rosen while the defendant’s finger remained on the trigger,” the charging documents said. Prosecutors said the gun was loaded, but jammed.

Driver Lindy Jones, 41, was also with second- and third-degree criminal possession of a weapon after investigators found a loaded and defaced 9 mm handgun during a search of the Kia he was driving before Monday's shooting, according to charging documents.

For the second consecutive day Friday, hundreds of police officers and other visitors, including elected officials and everyday Long Islanders, lined up at the Massapequa Funeral Home to pay respect to Diller’s family.

“The last five days have been a living nightmare for this family,” said Patrick Hendry, president of the NYPD Police Benevolent Association. “This is a close-knit family dedicated to service. There are police officers in their family. His wife, a nurse, is helping people every single day, just like this hero police officer, Jonathan Diller, did every single day.”

“As police officers, we know we have an incredibly difficult job. But there's nothing harder than losing one of our own,” Hendry said. “And there's nothing harder than seeing a family at the hospital in this week, devastated, and it's our job as police officers to be there for this family in any way possible. Our police officers across this city are heartbroken, and we're going to be there for this family every step of the way.”

Diller joined the NYPD in February 2021 and was assigned to the community response team in February 2024, working out of the 105th Precinct and later the 116th.

Bob Chavanne, who said he was the bugler at Long Island National Cemetery for 22 years, played patriotic melodies on his trumpet across the street from the funeral home Friday. Chavanne also played “Badge of Honor” and taps on his trumpet before the wake began and at times held an American flag.

“My heart and soul has been troubled and the spirit of God brought me here to do something special,” Chavanne said.  “I wanted him to hear it at heaven’s gate that we’re here for his family and son. We know he’s a true hero and we’re all hurting in this country.”

Long Island Reps. Andrew Garbarino (R-Bayport) and Anthony D’Esposito (R-Island Park) said they met with U.S. Ambassador to Vatican City Joe Donnelly, who is originally from Massapequa. Donnelly said Pope Francis was planning a Mass at St. Peter’s Basilica to pray for Diller’s family.

“This is a terrible tragedy, you have a 1-year-old that is never going to have a father again because we continue to allow lifelong criminals on the streets,” D’Esposito said. “Their life was taken because they wore the uniform. And we need to do more.”