Police announce arrests as mourners pay final respects to Long Island teen who was stabbed to death
Mourners pay final respects to teen who was stabbed to death on Long Island
Hundreds of mourners gathered in Oceanside on Saturday to pay their final respects to Khaseen Morris, the 16-year-old that was stabbed to death in a brawl on September 16.
Hundreds of mourners gathered on Saturday to pay their final respects to Khaseen Morris, the 16-year-old Oceanside High School student that was stabbed to death in a brawl on September 16.
The services were being held as police announced that seven teenagers had been arrested in connection to the stabbing.
Eighteen-year-old Tyler Flach was indicted earlier this week on a second-degree murder charge in Morris' killing. Newsday reports that Flach has maintained his innocence and is being held without bail.
Those arrested Friday include 19-year-old Haakim Mechan, 18-year-old Marquis Stephens, 18-year-old Javonte Neals, 17-year-old Taj Woodruff and 17-year-old Sean Merritt, all of Long Beach. They all pleaded not guilty to second-degree gang assault at their arraignment Saturday in First District Court in Hempstead.
Two 16-year-olds also were charged with gang assault but were not named by police because of their age. Scott Gross, an attorney for one of the 16-year-olds, said his client "played no role" in the killing.
Detective Lt. Stephen Fitzpatrick said at a news conference Saturday the fight at a strip mall near Oceanside High School started because Morris was with the ex-girlfriend of one of the suspects.
Fitzpatrick said the suspects all took part in the attack on Morris. "Each one of them had an active role," he said. "They came with the intention to seriously hurt him. Khaseen got killed as a result."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.