Tevin Alvarez, 30, a Schenectady resident, will be sentenced to twenty years to life in state prison after he pled guilty today in Schenectady County Court, to Murder in the Second Degree for the killing of Ieasha Merritt on July 5, 2020. Alvarez and two other gunmen had been in an altercation earlier in the night of July 4th and sought to retaliate when they opened fire in a parking lot at the corner of Albany and Hamlin Streets in Schenectady. Ms. Merritt, who was not the intended target, and had nothing to do with the previous altercation, was struck in the head by one of the first shots fired. Paramedics rushed Ms. Merritt to the hospital, however, doctors were unable to save her life and she died several days later on July 10, 2020.
The killing was captured by a nearby surveillance camera, which also recorded the assailants stalking their intended victim at the scene and fleeing in a distinctive vehicle. Detectives who investigated the crime scene found evidence that at least twelve shots had been fired. Police began to focus on Alvarez when Schenectady patrol officer Ross Flood and Sgt. Charles Rumfelt, who were investigating another shooting on July 9, 2020, found a bag containing a nine-millimeter handgun hidden deep in brush near Crane Street and Sixth Avenue. Scientists at the New York State Police Forensic Investigation Center found DNA on the gun that matched Alvarez and were also able to determine that the gun was a ballistic match to the weapon that fired the shot that had killed Ms. Merritt.
Three other men, Xzobiaire Green, Dasaun Parsons and Warren Cusaac had previously been convicted for their roles in the homicide. Green and Parsons discharged weapons without causing injury and Cusaac drove the car containing all four participants.
The case was primarily investigated by Detective Jeffrey Remillard of the Schenectady Police Department, along with assistance from Investigator Darrin Jones from the New York State Police. The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorneys Peter Willis and James Faucher II. Alvarez was represented by attorney Mark Sacco. The sentencing is scheduled for January 13, 2023.
Schenectady County District Attorney Robert M. Carney stated: “Mr. Alvarez admitted that by sending a hail of bullets in the direction of Ieasha Merritt he engaged in reckless conduct under circumstances evincing a depraved indifference to human life and thereby caused the death of an innocent person minding her own business. I would like to thank her mother Shanta Merritt for supporting the police and our office in this investigation and prosecution and for keeping in the public eye the horrible injustice suffered by her family from the tragic loss of her daughter.”
For further information contact ADA Peter Willis at 518-727-1025 or 518-388-4364 ext. 4146.