On August 5, Westchester County District Attorney Susan Cacace announced that Ajany Waite, 33, of Mount Vernon, was sentenced to 18 years in state prison for breaking into his ex-girlfriend’s home and slashing her in the face with a kitchen knife during a 2025 attack.
The defendant was sentenced before Judge Anne Bianchi in Westchester County Court to 18 years in state prison, with 5 years of post-release supervision.
On June 17, 2026, a jury found Waite guilty of two counts of Assault in the First Degree, two counts of Burglary in the First Degree, three counts of Assault in the Second Degree, all felonies, and Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Fourth Degree, a misdemeanor.
DA Cacace said: “This case is yet another terrifying example of the horrors that domestic violence survivors live through. Our office remains committed, not only to supporting domestic violence victims in any way possible, but also in doing everything within our power to prevent these incidents from happening. I applaud the tremendous courage shown by the victim in facing her assailant in this case and by her son for bravely fending off the vicious attack.”
On June 6, 2025, at approximately 5 a.m., the defendant, after seeing his ex-girlfriend at a party in the Bronx, went to her residence in Mount Vernon. He repeatedly banged on the building’s entrance before gaining access and kicking in the victim’s apartment door.
The victim ran into her roommate’s bedroom and shut the door, but as she tried to keep it closed, the defendant forced it open just enough to slash her on the right side of her face with a large kitchen knife. He then stabbed her in the left shoulder as she turned her body away from the door.
The victim’s son, who was home during the attack, intervened, grabbing a hammer and using it against the defendant, who then fled the scene.
The victim received approximately 25 stitches to her face, resulting in permanent scarring and lasting vision-related injuries, as well as six stitches to her shoulder. She also suffered a broken right cheekbone and a torn ligament in her neck.
The Mount Vernon Police Department, which handled the investigation, arrested the defendant in Manhattan on June 7, 2025.
In a statement read aloud in court by ADA Alexandra Kontos, the victim stated: “The day you broke into my home, and cut me, punched, strangled and stabbed me. Everything changed. You have made my life very unhappy and sad. I have lost a lot because of you. I am sad. Thinking about what you did to me is torture.”
The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Alexandra Kontos and Domestic Violence Bureau Chief Joyce.