Kings County District Attorney Kenneth P. Thompson announced the indictment of Kendel Felix for his participation in the kidnapping and murder of Menachem Stark on January 2, 2014. The NYPD and the District Attorney’s Office launched a joint investigation to identify and prosecute the individuals who took part in the kidnapping and murder of Stark. Felix faces a charge of Murder in the Second Degree, which carries a penalty of 25-years-to-life in prison.
“I applaud our Homicide and Rackets Bureaus for their work with our partners at the NYPD in getting to the bottom of this horrific crime, and helping us get one step closer to securing justice for Menachem Stark and his family” said District Attorney Ken Thompson.
According to court documents, and surveillance videos, Stark was approached and accosted on the street by two individuals as he left his office located at 331 Rutledge Street on January 2, 2014 at approximately 11:30p.m. After an extended physical struggle with those individuals, Stark was forced into a waiting vehicle and abducted from the location. On January 3, 2014 at approximately 4:00p.m., less than 17 hours after the kidnapping, Stark’s partially burned corpse was discovered by Nassau County Police in a garbage dumpster at a gas station located in Great Neck, Long Island. The Nassau County Medical Examiner’s Office conducted an autopsy on Stark, and determined the cause of death to be asphyxia by compression of the neck and chest.
Felix has been charged with Murder in the Second Degree under the Felony Murder provision of the statute, given that Stark’s death occurred during the commission, or attempted commission of a kidnapping. The investigation into the other participants is on-going.
The case is being investigated by Prosecutors from the Homicide Bureau and Investigations Division of the Kings County District Attorney’s Office, along with detectives from Brooklyn North Homicide Task Force and the 90th Precinct Detective’s Squad.
An indictment is an accusatory instrument and not proof of a defendant’s guilt.
Defendant Information
Kendel Felix
DOB: 06/08/87
Charges:
Murder in the Second Degree
(YWN Desk – NYC)
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14 Responses
why not first degree? why are they so convinced that they didn’t intend to kill? This whole kidnapping looked extremely premeditated.
Reb geula,
Why don’t you read ny penal code 125.27 or contact legal experts (and experts on all matters) like akuperman and nfgo3 for an answer to your question.
Something stinks soooo badly…this story does not add up… too many cover ups
jew yorker:
I dont read penal codes and nor do I rely on what you call legal experts. I have something that can’t be taught, nor bought, nor attained on your own. If you’re lucky enough to be born with it then good for you and if not then I can’t explain to you fully what it means. But the name of it is “common sense” with a healthy dose of “intuition”
Geula—if you’re asking a legal question which you were and you had even an iota of common sense then you’d read the statute and not rely on your so called “common sense.”
The District Attorney gains nothing by announcing how great his staff was and how certain he is that they arrested the right person. If that is true, it will be obvious at trial (and is already known to the defeandant). If it is false, it prejudices the jury pool and at best forces the trial to be held upstate, and at worse will result it a mistrail an appeal – and if false will make the District Attorney and the police look silly.
P.S. For the most part, New York’s “first degree” is very narrow (it used to be capital back when New York routinely executed murderers)- and what is first degree elsewhere is “second degree” in New York. Being accused of killing someone through bungling during a kidnapping is less serious that setting out to kill someone in New York.
(vii) the victim was killed while the defendant was in the course of
committing or attempting to commit and in furtherance of robbery,
burglary in the first degree or second degree, kidnapping in the first
degree, arson in the first degree or second degree, rape in the first
degree, criminal sexual act in the first degree, sexual abuse in the
first degree, aggravated sexual abuse in the first degree or escape in
the first degree, or in the course of and furtherance of immediate
flight after committing or attempting to commit any such crime or in the
course of and furtherance of immediate flight after attempting to commit
the crime of murder in the second degree; provided however, the victim
is not a participant in one of the aforementioned crimes and, provided
further that, unless the defendant’s criminal liability under this
subparagraph is based upon the defendant having commanded another person
to cause the death of the victim or intended victim pursuant to section
20.00 of this chapter, this subparagraph shall not apply where the
defendant’s criminal liability is based upon the conduct of another
pursuant to section 20.00 of this chapter; or
where are the rest of the group of murderers? It was not only this guy…
He faces 25 years for kidnapping and killing – however Sholom Mordechai Rubashkin faces 27 years for filing wrong paperwork………!!??
Does this make sense to anyone?!
Klal yisroel–not saying rubashkin’s sentence was fair/unfair but comparing sentencing under federal guidelines to a potential state sentence is a nonsensical waste of a comment.
@#10 jew yorker
I agree with your comment that one is federal and one isn’t. But I believe #9 klal yisroel was asking is why in todays day and age in the same country do we have similar amount of jail time for very different crimes. Either a killer should get more than 25 years or a white collar crime should get way less than 27. But to have white collar crime for that amount of time is ridiculous. And to have a murderer ONLY sit for 25 years is PERPLEXING…………
Are we going to get an apology from the newspapers for their vicious slander of Mr. Stark ??
Mr. Hanon–don’t hold your breath waiting for an apology. Furthermore, you do realize that truth is an affirmative defense to defamation.
My apologies to Commenter No. 2 for not getting here sooner. Most of you obviously need my help, although Commenter No. 7 correctly cited the relevant statute.
Foist of all, ‘dere ain’t no difference in N’York twixt foist degree an’ secon’ degree moiduh. ‘Deys bot’ of ’em Class A felonies and bot’ ‘ll sen’ yuh up ‘de rivuh f’eh 25 years t’uh life. An’ anoth’uh t’ing, only diff’ence is mainly who yuh croaked – (a) cops, fi’yuh fi’tuhs, an’ (b) mugs what yuh’s robbin’, if dat’s why yuh croaked ’em.
The suspect has already explained that this murder was an oopsy in the course of a robbery, so he has, according to the news reports, pretty much made the case against him all by his lonesome. So there ain’t know need to rub it in by accusing him of first degree murder, as the potential sentence would be the same.
The real problem for Commenter 1/4 is his/her belief that he/she can figure things out for him/herself without any knowing any relevant facts or circumstances. That is what he/she really means by his/her invocation of his/her “common sense” and “intuition.” Neither is an effective substitute for facts, circumstances and reason.