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Bronx resident Rick Scocozza pleaded guilty this week to second-degree attempted burglary after holding a family at gunpoint while attempting to burglarize their Pelham Manor home in 2019.
Westchester County District Attorney Mimi Rocah said that as a persistent violent felony offender, Scocozza faces a minimum of 12 years to life or a maximum of 25 years to life in prison.
On Aug. 22, 2019, Rocah said that Scocozza entered a family’s Jackson Avenue home in Pelham Manor through the garage and held two members of the household at gunpoint while demanding they give him money.
When Scocozza ordered the victims to take him to a different area of the home to obtain more items, a third member of the family attacked him, causing Scocozza to drop the gun.
Rocah said that one of the victims picked up the gun, ran out of the house, threw it in a bush, and called the police while other members of the family held Scocozza down until officers could arrive.
Ultimately it was determined that the weapon Scocozza used to threaten the family was actually a BB gun.
Following his arrest, police also recovered a backpack that Scocozza was wearing during the armed robbery, which contained duct tape, zip ties, and a pillowcase.
Rocah noted that Scocozza was also wearing camouflaged face paint, and had parked his car near the home, where investigators also found his face paint, along with a receipt for it.
“Being threatened in one’s own home with a gun is traumatizing. Rick Scocozza caused this family pain and torment when he entered their home that night,” Rocah said.
“I commend these victims for their bravery in such a frightening situation and I applaud the work of the Pelham Manor Police Department for acting quickly to get and keep this dangerous person off the street.”
Scocozza is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 11, 2022.
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