Westchester County District Attorney Susan Cacace announced on March 26 that an 18-year-old Yonkers resident was indicted on two counts of Murder in the Second Degree, among other charges, in connection with the Feb. 6 stabbings of two 16-year-old boys at a Yonkers pizzeria.
The defendant, who was 17 at the time of the incident, was arraigned Tuesday afternoon in the Youth Part before Judge Helen Blackwood. In addition to the two counts of murder, the defendant was charged with two counts of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Fourth Degree and one count of Tampering With Physical Evidence. He pleaded not guilty to the charges. He is remanded to the Westchester County Jail pending further proceedings.
DA Cacace said: “These senseless killings must stop. Our children are our community’s greatest assets. But now there are two grieving families who will never know the men these young boys would have grown to become. I offer my deepest condolences to the families of these boys. The task of protecting Westchester’s children remains among my highest priorities.”
On Feb. 6, at approximately 8 p.m., while inside a Yonkers pizzeria, the defendant is accused of stabbing the first victim, a 16-year-old resident of Yonkers. As the defendant exited the pizzeria, he is further accused of stabbing the second victim, a 16-year-old resident of The Bronx.
Both children died shortly after arriving at an area hospital.
The case has been scheduled for further proceedings on May 9.
The case is being prosecuted by Homicide Bureau Chief Lana Hochheiser and Assistant District Attorney Leigh Wellington.
