Teenage Gunman Pleads Guilty To Murder Of Yonkers Student

YONKERS, NY — On Friday, a teenager pled guilty to the murder of a fellow teenager on a Yonkers street.

Jamir Thompson entered a guilty plea to murder in the second degree for the killing of 18-year-old Marilyn Cotto-Montanez as she walked down Morningside Avenue with her nine-year-old sister in 2019. Thompson, who was just 15 years old at the time of the shooting, claimed he was firing the gun at a rival, but instead shot Cotto-Montanez in the head. The murdered high school student was an innocent bystander who was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.

“One young life was tragically lost and another young life was forever changed on this terrible day,” District Attorney Miriam Rocah said. “We will hold accountable those who commit acts of violence and continue to work on the scourge of illegal guns in our communities and fight to keep them out of the hands of young people.”

Thompson, who is now 17 years old, was prosecuted as a juvenile. He remains behind bars pending sentencing which is scheduled for September. He faces a sentence ranging from nine years to life in prison.

The case was prosecuted by Deputy Bureau Chief Daniel Flecha and Assistant DA Catalina Blanco Buitrago. The plea was accepted by Westchester Family Court Judge Helen Blackwood.