Man sentenced in violent attack of restaurant owner in Albany

An Albany man has been ordered to serve 22 years in state prison for a robbery and attack at an Albany restaurant that left the owner severely brain-damaged.

Lucas Healey, 43, was sentenced on Friday, exactly a year and one day after he and a friend ran up a $425 bill at Shogun Sushi and Sake Bar, then tried to dine-and-dash after paying only $50.

The companion was already long gone when the staff confronted Healey outside as he tried to make his escape. Healey was caught on security video as he sucker punched restaurateur Su Wen Zheng, 50, knocking him unconscious and causing his head to violently strike the sidewalk. Zheng underwent emergency surgery and remained in a coma for two weeks.

Healey’s prison sentence is to be followed by five years of post-release supervision. Though he didn’t testify during the trial, Healey took the stand during Friday’s status hearing to blame his crimes on a life of drinking and drug abuse. He had been in drug treatment, but he said he relapsed shortly before the Shogun attack.

Healey has six prior felony charges, which– if taken into consideration during sentencing–could have landed him with a life sentence. Albany County Supreme Court Judge Roger McDonough did not explain why he chose to deny Healey persistent felon status. He did say that Healey failed to show remorse.

“I saw on this screen, in 4D, I saw the defendant’s brutish, drunken, bullying, larcenous actions that day,” McDonough said.

Assistant District Attorney Ryan Carty read a statement from Su Wen Zheng’s daughter, Nicole Zheng, before sentencing, which described how Zheng’s family has been dramatically altered by the event.

“The criminal Lucas Healey has stripped my dad of his memory, vibrant personality and, most importantly, his ability to live,” Zheng wrote. “My dad isn’t him anymore.”

Healey was originally also charged with a hate crime because witnesses heard him repeatedly shout at the restaurant workers, telling them to,”Go back to your country,” and “Speak English” as he threw punches at them. An Albany County grand jury did not include the hate crime charge when they indicted Healey. They did not explain why.

Legal experts say it probably would not have added additional prison time to Healey’s sentence. Zheng’s family and co-workers have repeatedly expressed hopes that Healey would never be released from prison and are disappointed by the sentence. Even without being given persistent felony status, Healey faced a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison.

Zheng has made some gains thanks to physical and occupational therapy, but he’s still unable to speak and he has difficulty walking. Experts who testified during the trial say his brain damage is likely permanent. 

“This tragedy is not just a temporary hardship; it has changed our lives forever,” Zheng’s wife, Sophia, tearfully told the judge in Mandarin during a brief hearing on May 2. A translation of her statement was later read to the court.

District Attorney Lee Kindlon offered a message to the Zheng family. 

“I hope the family can find solace in this sentence, knowing that Healey will be behind bars for the next two decades,” Kindlon said.