Multiple news sources are reporting the arrest of Hakeem Scott in the December murder of José Sucuzhañay. The Brooklyn real estate agent had been walking home with his brother Romel on December 10, 2008 when Scott and Keith Phoenix stopped their SUV. The New York Times reports:
Mr. Scott approached José Sucuzhañay and smashed a beer bottle over the back of his head, the police said, and then chased Romel Sucuzhañay.
Mr. Phoenix then took an aluminum baseball bat from the rear of the vehicle and struck José repeatedly on his shoulder, ribs and back until he fell, the police said.
“At that point Phoenix struck José several more times, full force, with crushing blows to his head,†said Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly, who announced the arrest at a news conference at Police Headquarters on Wednesday evening with Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Charles J. Hynes, the Brooklyn district attorney. Once in custody, Mr. Scott “made a full confession,†Mr. Kelly said.
“He said words to the effect that he had seen the news accounts,†Mr. Kelly said. “It had troubled him and, as a result, he wanted to get it off his chest.â€
Romel Sucuzhañay, who had been staying with his brother and was visiting on a two-month visa from Ecuador, was not seriously injured.
New York’s CBS affiliate details the investigation:
Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said his detectives were able to make the bust thanks to good old fashioned police work. They tracked a Ford Explorer witnesses at the scene described.
Not long after the attack surveillance video from the Triboro Bridge toll plaza showed Phoenix and Scott in an Explorer driving to their homes in the Bronx.
Witnesses helped police track down the SUV, and through a prior accident report Phoenix was identified as a suspect and then linked to Scott, Kelly said. The investigation eventually led them to Scott, who has a lengthy rap sheet, including arrests for assault, robbery and weapons possession. Scott was apprehended without incident near his residence on East 161st Street in the Bronx on Tuesday.
“[Scott] said he had seen the news reports and that they had troubled him,” Kelly said. “He said he wanted to get it off his chest.”
Scott will be arraigned Thursday on second-degree murder charges.
Police continue to search for Keith Phoenix (below), who is currently on parole for armed robbery. Anyone with information on the whereabouts of Phoenix should contact Crime stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS.
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