Second suspect arrested in 2021 Long Island acid attack that left woman severely hurt

A second person was arrested Tuesday in connection with an acid attack on a Long Island woman that happened five years ago.

Shaquille Coke, of Brooklyn, was charged with assault and ordered held without bail for allegedly soliciting a friend to carry out the 2021 attack on Nafiah Ikram.

2nd suspect and Ikram dated, officials say

Coke and Ikram dated when they were both students at Hofstra University, but Ikram broke off the brief relationship in February 2021, prosecutors said.

One month later, a hooded man threw a cup of acid in Ikram's face in her Elmont driveway before taking off. Prosecutors allege Coke drove the getaway car.

The attack left Ikram severely burned and blind in one eye.

"His jealousy and obsession were the real motive behind this crime," Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said.

Coke told reporters "I'm innocent" and shook his head as prosecutors claimed he used a pseudonym to message Ikram and described him as a jealous, possessive ex trying to trap her.

"Coke thought she had been unfaithful while they were together, and he could not accept that the months-long relationship had run its course and it was over," Donnelly said. "He tried to trick Nafiah into admitting that she cheated on him."

He allegedly continued to taunt Ikram with anonymous texts after the attack.

"The defendant disgustingly and cruelly called Nafiah 'Freddy Krueger,'" Donnelly said.

Connecting the 2 suspects

Police initially interviewed Coke but were unable to connect him to the crime until a tip came in about Brooklyn resident Terrell Campbell.

On Feb. 10 of this year, Campbell was identified as the suspect who threw the acid at Ikram. He pleaded not guilty to two counts of assault, possession of a weapon, and possession of noxious material.

Prosecutors said Coke and Campbell were high school friends who allegedly texted the day of the attack, making plans. Campbell, an aspiring rapper, even wrote a song called "Obsidian," which references burning someone's face with acid, according to officials.

Ikram told reporters she and Coke had gone on just two dates.

"I told the cops this from day one, and I guess they didn't have enough evidence to, like, lock him up," she said, "but it's, like, just insane because he was the only person that I had been involved with."

Coke, a soon-to-be registered nurse, faces 25 years if convicted. Defense attorney Kenneth Montgomery said Coke is "not guilty," adding, "This is a presumption of innocence."

"It's a big shock, and right now, I'm trying to just decompress and figure out how I'm feeling emotionally," Ikram said.

There is a five-year statute of limitations on assault cases, and the attack happened five years and one week ago, but Donnelly said she is confident the law is on their side and hopes the pair of arrests brings Ikram peace.