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YONKERS, N.Y. A Yonkers bodega owner and an employee were indicted Thursday in a case involving the alleged killing of a reportedly disruptive patron earlier this year.
Francisco Javier Vasquez, 37, owner of the shop at 154 S. Broadway, and Kervin Ortiz, 44, both of the Bronx, were charged with multiple felonies after allegedly beating a customer with a baseball bat and stabbing him in the buttocks after an argument, according to the Westchester County District Attorneys office.
Prosecutors say that at about 11 p.m. on April 8, 45-year-old Rodney Jackson stopped in the bodega to buy a soda. After an argument broke out between Ortiz and Jackson, the customer was asked to leave and challenged Ortiz to a fight outside the shop.
Jackson left the shop, authorities said, but returned a short time later and began tossing merchandise around the store before leaving again.
Police say that's when Ortiz picked up a metal baseball bat he kept behind the counter, following Jackson out onto the sidewalk and hit him with the bat. Vazquez then stabbed Jackson with a knife, authorities said.
Jackson was taken to St. Josephs Medical Center, where he died the following morning.
Vazquez was charged with one count of both first and second-degree manslaughter, as well as third-degree criminal possession of a weapon, all felonies. Ortiz was charged with third-degree criminal possession of a weapon and second-degree attempted assault.
If convicted, Vasquez faces a maximum of 25 years in state prison on the top count of the indictment, while Ortiz faces a maximum of 7 years.
Both men remain free on $125,000 bond. Their next court appearance is on Sept. 13.
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