U.S. Marshals said they captured two fugitives Friday in Pennsylvania who are tied to the deadly beating of a New York apartment owner after the suspects were found squatting in the victim’s unit.
Federal agents said they took Halley Tejada, 19, and a 16-year-old girl into custody in York, Pennsylvania, on charges of receiving stolen property after they crashed a car that was stolen out of Manhattan.
Marshals said the crash took place March 13. The suspects ran off after the collision took place.
A day later, New York City police said they responded to a homicide scene in the Kips Bay neighborhood.
Officers discovered the body of 52-year-old Nadia Vitels stuffed in a duffel bag inside the apartment’s front closet. The medical examiner said she was killed by blunt force trauma to the head.
Police sources told WCBS-TV that Ms. Vitels flew from Spain to New York to prepare the apartment for a family friend. The apartment previously belonged to Ms. Vitel’s late mother and had been unoccupied for months.
Ms. Vitels didn’t know the apartment was being squatted in until she arrived at the unit, according to the station. Police said the suspects surprised the victim and beat her to death when they returned.
Two suspects were seen on surveillance video stealing Ms. Vitel’s car from the street in front of the apartment building. It’s the same vehicle tied to the March 13 crash in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania.
U.S. Marshals said Mr. Tejada and the teen girl will first be extradited from York County to Dauphin County in Pennsylvania to be arraigned on the stolen property charges.
The pair could then be extradited to New York City to face charges in Ms. Vitel’s killing after that.
• Matt Delaney can be reached at mdelaney@washingtontimes.com.
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