Police: Bronx man killed for flashing middle finger; Suspect in custody

EASTCHESTER, Bronx (WABC) -- Police have arrested a suspect they say fatally stabbed a man to death after the victim reportedly flashed his middle finger.

The stabbing occurred just before 7 p.m. Tuesday, after an accident at Huguenot and Hollers in Eastchester.

After 25-year-old Billy Sierra allegedly flipped his middle finger as he and his friends passed the scene, authorities say the men involved in the crash jumped in the car and followed them. The suspects apparently confronted him a block away at Hollers and Eastchester Place.

There was an altercation, and Sierra was stabbed in the shoulder. Sierra's friends attempted to take him to the hospital but stopped to wait on an ambulance nearby.

"I think somebody getting killed over getting flipped off is ridiculous," area resident John Villanova said. "But I'm not surprised."

Sierra was taken to Jacobi Hospital, where he later died.

Later Wednesday, police arrested 46-year-old Juan Garcia, who they say was with two relatives who yelled at the occupants of the victim's car to slow down.

During the confrontation, police say Sierra admitted he "flipped him off" and kicked their vehicle, which apparently had just been in a crash stemming from an unrelated dispute with another person about littering in the neighborhood.

In the ensuing fight, authorities say Garcia stabbed Sierra in the chest.

Police say the suspect tossed the knife, but it was recovered nearby. He was believed to be with his son and another relative at the time.

Garcia, who has three prior arrests, is charged with second-degree murder, manslaughter and criminal possession of a weapon.