Inset: Asif Qureshi (Nassau County Police Department). Background: The suburban home where Qureshi allegedly murdered his estranged wife in Herricks, N.Y. (Google Maps).
A man in New York state is behind bars for fatally poisoning his estranged wife with cyanide, Empire State law enforcement officials say.
Asif Qureshi, 53, stands accused of one count of murder and two counts of burglary for allegedly killing Aleena Asif, 46, according to the Nassau County District Attorney's Office.
The underlying incident occurred Oct. 17, 2025, at a home on Larch Drive in Herricks, a small, census-designated place in Long Island located just a few miles east of the New York City borough of Queens.
A few minutes before 8 a.m. on the day in question, Asif left with her 14-year-old son and 7-year-old daughter to drop them off at school. Moments later, Qureshi allegedly snuck in by unlocking the front door wearing a dark hooded jacket, baseball cap, black gloves and a mask, according to a press release issued by the DA's office. The defendant is also said to have been holding a red and white tote bag.
Then, the killer allegedly hid while his wife returned and prepared their youngest daughter for school, authorities said. The victim and the child left around 8:50 a.m. and Asif returned alone at around 9 a.m.
She would never again leave the house.
At around 10:50 a.m., Qureshi left the house wearing the same outfit and carrying the same tote bag, along with a large black duffle bag, according to the DA's office. Then, near the intersection of Marcus Avenue and Denton Avenue, the defendant allegedly got onto an electric scooter which had been locked to a telephone pole and drove down Hillside Avenue toward the Queens neighborhood of Bellerose.
All the while, Asif's eldest daughter had been taking classes at college – having left the house around 7 a.m. that day. She eventually received a phone call from her younger sister's school alerting her that their mother never came to pick the little girl up after school ended.
Then, the teenager called police, who arrived at the house to find the front door locked. After gaining entry, officers found Asif deceased in her bedroom, lying face-up in bed, with red burns around her mouth, according to the DA's office.
The autopsy conducted by the Nassau County Medical Examiner's Office determined the victim died from asphyxiation due to inhalation of a chemical agent. That agent was later determined to be cyanide.
Investigators eventually linked the defendant to the murder by way of surveillance footage from a nearby 7-Eleven and bus stop in Queens, according to law enforcement. Qureshi was allegedly wearing the same clothes but unmasked — before and after the incident.
Additionally, surveillance footage from a week before the murder appeared to show the husband casing the residence.
"Video evidence captured on October 10, 2025, also allegedly captured the defendant, dressed in the same clothing, locking the electric scooter used to flee the scene a week later to the same pole near Marcus and Denton Avenues," the DA's press release reads. "On that day, the defendant allegedly walked up to the home, circled the house, and left. The defendant is again captured on video at a 7-Eleven along the route to the home with his mask down."
Police executed a search warrant at Qureshi's residence and discovered black latex gloves "similar to those seen in video surveillance" and "bags consistent with the red and white tote bag" the defendant allegedly carried the day of the murder, authorities said.
The defendant is alleged to have stalked his estranged wife for months after she demanded a divorce, police told Manhattan-based ABC flagship television station WABC.
"Aleena Asif brought her children to school on October 17th, 2025, unaware of the danger lurking inside of her own home and her estranged husband hiding in the shadows," Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said in a statement. "Asif Qureshi allegedly snuck into the house during school drop-off, lying in wait, until his wife returned home. When he had her alone, he allegedly held cyanide over her mouth, killed her, and left her body for their children to gruesomely discover. A home should be a place of sanctuary, but this defendant turned it into a house of horrors."
The defendant was arrested on Oct. 23, 2025, and he was arraigned on Thursday, where he entered a plea of not guilty.
Qureshi is being detained in the Nassau County Correctional Center without bond. He is next slated to appear in court on Feb. 18.
Comments