The NYPD said on Wednesday, March 20, that a 32-year-old Bronx male resident is the fourth person to be arrested and the fifth person to be charged in connection with the kidnapping and murdering of two young people who were shot, execution-style, and left in a burning car on the side of a road near Pelham Bay Park in 2022, as reported at the time.

 

As reported, pursuant to the ongoing investigation, police had previously said that Terrence White, 26, of 212 West 109th Street in Manhattan was the third Manhattan man to be arrested and charged on March 18, at 10.30 a.m. in The Bronx. They said he was charged with two counts of murder, two counts of manslaughter, robbery, grand larceny, two counts of kidnapping, two counts of arson, two counts of criminal use of a firearm, and three counts of criminal possession of a weapon.

As also reported, Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark had announced on March 13 that a second Manhattan man had previously been arrested and charged with kidnapping and murder.

Clark said the defendant, Rahul Cuya, 24, of Baruch Drive, Manhattan, was charged with first-degree murder, six counts of second-degree murder, two counts of first-degree manslaughter, two counts of first-degree arson, two counts of second-degree arson, two counts of third-degree arson, two counts of first-degree kidnapping, two counts of second-degree kidnapping, two counts of first-degree criminal use of a firearm, three counts of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, two counts of first degree robbery, third-degree grand larceny and fourth-degree grand larceny.

 

“The victims were shot and virtually cremated when they were found,” Clark said of the case. “We are holding accountable those who allegedly participated in this brutal crime and will continue to pursue justice for the family of these two young people.”

 

The NYPD said that Cuya was arrested on Tuesday, March 12 in The Bronx. He was arraigned the following day before Bronx Supreme Court Justice Brenda Rivera at Bronx Criminal Court. The court heard that Cuya was remanded in custody and is due back in court in June. Jahmel Sanders, another co-defendant in the case, had previously been arraigned in connection to the incident on March 9, 2023, before Justice George Villegas. A fifth co-defendant, Steven Santiago, has been charged but is still being sought.

 

As reported, Sanders, 30, also of Baruch Drive, Manhattan, was charged with five counts of first-degree murder, six counts of second-degree murder, two counts of first-degree manslaughter, two counts of first-degree arson, two counts of second-degree arson, two counts of third-degree arson, two counts of first-degree didnapping, two counts of second-degree kidnapping, two counts of first-degree criminal use of a firearm, three counts of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, two counts of first-degree robbery, third-degree grand larceny and fourth-degree grand larceny. He was due back in court in June 2023. We are following up on the status of his case and will share any updates we receive.

Reacting at the time of Sanders arrest, Clark said, “The deaths of these two young people allegedly culminated a chain of violent events in Manhattan and Queens. A defendant has been brought to justice and we will hold accountable any others involved in this horrific crime. I hope this indictment brings some solace to the victims’ parents; they suffer the loss of their children who were burned beyond recognition.”

 

On March 20, police said pursuant to an ongoing investigation, Richard Santiago of Kelly Street in the Longwood section of The Bronx was arrested and charged on Wednesday, March 20, at 12.15 p.m. in the confines of the 45th Precinct in the Bronx. They said he was charged with five counts of murder, two counts of manslaughter, two counts of robbery, grand larceny, attempted grand larceny, four counts of kidnapping, six counts of arson, two counts of criminal use of a firearm, and three counts of criminal possession of a weapon.

 

According to the investigation, and as reported at the time, on May 16, 2022, Cuya, in conjunction with Sanders and others, allegedly kidnapped Nikki Huang, 22, and Jesse Parrilla, 22, both of Manhattan, transported them to Shore Road near Pelham Bay Park in The Bronx, where they were shot execution-style. The car was set on fire with the victims inside of it. Huang suffered bullet wounds to her head and neck. Parilla suffered bullet wounds to his head and chest. Their bodies were burned almost to ash.

According to the investigation, prior to the shootings, on May 15, 2022, at 9.30 p.m., Huang told friends who are alleged gang members that she was robbed of a purse in Manhattan, and two hours later, a man was fatally shot in Manhattan.

 

At around 1.20 a.m. on May 16, 2022, Parrilla, driving his mother’s Honda Accord, was dropping off Huang near her home on the Lower East Side when the defendants allegedly grabbed him and put him in another vehicle, and one of the defendant’s took the Accord. Around 20 minutes later, Huang was lured out of her building and taken into the same Honda Accord. The victims were driven to Queens and then to The Bronx. At around 4.16 a.m., Parilla’s mother’s Accord was discovered in flames on Shore Road near a golf course.

At around 1.20 a.m. on May 16, 2022, Parrilla, driving his mother’s Honda Accord, was dropping off Huang near her home on the Lower East Side when the defendants allegedly grabbed him and put him in another vehicle, and one of the defendant’s took the Accord. Around 20 minutes later, Huang was lured out of her building and taken into the same Honda Accord. The victims were driven to Queens and then to The Bronx. At around 4.16 a.m., Parilla’s mother’s Accord was discovered in flames on Shore Road near a golf course.

 

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Burim Namani, senior counsel in the Bronx District Attorney’s homicide bureau, under the supervision of Christine Scaccia, chief of the homicide bureau, and under the overall supervision of James Brennan, deputy chief of the trial division, and Theresa Gottlieb, chief of the trial division.