Fugitive pleads guilty to Westchester murder

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Palestina

WHITE PLAINS – A Yonkers man will face up to 25 years in state
prison when sentenced in April in connection with the shooting death of
a Yonkers man early in the morning of May 1, 2014.

Edwin Palestina, 24, of Yonkers and another man drove up to the victim,
Rodney Saunders, 23, as he walked on Woodsworth Avenue in Yonkers and
ambushed him, firing several times, hitting Saunders six times. The fatal
shot struck him in the chest, traveling through his heart and lungs.
A witness looking out his window was also fired at, but the bullet hit
a window guard, grazing his shoulder.

The two shooters jumped back into their van and fled the scene.

Palestina was later identified as one of the shooters. On June 16, 2015
he was arrested by Yonkers detectives and the FBI in Houston, Texas.

He is being held in the Westchester Jail.



Picture of Hank Gross

Hank Gross

Hank Gross is the founder of Mid-Hudson News and a veteran journalist with over five decades of experience covering the Hudson Valley. A graduate of SUNY Oneonta, where he began his career in broadcasting, Hank has worked across radio, TV, and print media since 1970. His work has earned him numerous accolades, including an Associated Press “Best Newscast” award and recognition as a “Pillar of the Community” by the Greater Hudson Valley Family Health Center. He lives in Middletown with his wife, Virginia.