Man Kills Romantic Rival From Westchester, Burns His Body: Sentenced To Decades In Prison

A man will spend decades in prison after fatally shooting a victim from Westchester and attempting to hide the evidence by burning their body in an apartment building basement, officials said.

Blake was shot and killed in North Broadway (Route 9) in Yonkers.
Photo Credit: *Google Maps street view/Pixabay via Franz P. Sauerteig*

Ben Crnic

08/17/2023 11:30 a.m.

Brooklyn resident Derek Whitaker, age 58, was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison for the March 2020 murder of Mount Vernon resident Jonathan Blake, the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office announced on Wednesday, Aug. 16.

According to the DA's Office, during the early morning hours on the day of the murder, March 13, 2020, Whitaker ambushed Blake on North Broadway (Route 9) in Yonkers, killing the 55-year-old by shooting him in the head.

Whitaker then took Blake's body to the basement of an apartment building at 494 Jefferson Avenue in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood in Brooklyn, where he worked as a superintendent and where his mother lived.

Days later, on March 16, 2020, Whitaker then tried to cover up the murder by setting Blake's body on fire with gasoline. However, he was caught in the act when a resident smelled smoke and went down to the basement to find Whitaker standing over a metal barrel with Blake's two legs sticking out.

The resident then reported this incident to the building's manager who soon called 911. Whitaker was then arrested by members of the New York City Police Department.

An investigation into the murder later revealed that the two men had been romantic rivals and that Whitaker had been stalking Blake for four to six months.

Authorities also learned that in the days between the murder and Whitaker attempting to burn Blake's body, Whitaker has attended a church service in Westchester County where Blake and his family worshipped and had even sat in Blake's empty seat, embracing his brother.

After a jury trial, Whitaker was convicted of the murder on Friday, June 16.

Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said Whitaker's lengthy sentence "holds him accountable for killing an innocent man in cold blood and desecrating his remains."

"While nothing can return Jonathan Blake to his loved ones, I hope this sentence provides them with some measure of solace. Brooklyn is safer with this defendant behind bars," Gonzalez continued.

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