Suspect tied to teen's murder in Bronx through DNA collected at border, police say
BRONX (WABC) -- A man was arrested on multiple charges Wednesday in the death of a 16-year-old killed last summer in the Bronx.
Kenhy Sarrias-Buelvas, 37, was charged with killing 16-year-old Kemari Sanders after detectives used DNA collected by Customs and Border Protection agents when he crossed the border in Laredo, Texas in December 2023.
The DNA matched a sweatshirt detectives recovered from a laundromat dryer. Surveillance video showed the suspect throwing the sweatshirt in the dryer as he fled the shooting last August.
Sarrias-Buelvas is believed to be from Colombia and was selling marijuana from a van while working at a legitimate job at a Manhattan car dealership, police say.
Detectives believe he fatally shot Sanders in a botched robbery attempt. Sanders, riding on a moped with a friend, was struck in the neck and died in October.
Sanders was going into the 11th grade and looking forward to getting his driver's permit. Never did his mom expect his last weeks would be spent fighting for his life after being shot.
"He would give his shirt off his back, never talk back to me, that man took something that meant a lot, that was my baby boy," Sanders' mom Selena Cox said.
Cox is blaming lax immigration policy for her son's killing.
"If he was never able to be here, my son would be alive, so why is everyone mad because Trump is helping us," she said. "I'm angry ,I want to kill him. I just miss my son, for him to be murdered for nothing is mind blowing."
The circumstances surrounding the shooting are still a bit unclear. The defense is citing a lack of motive and eyewitness.
But the grief for Cox has never been more clear.
"He's never going to graduate high school, I'm never going to see him in prom, never going to have a grandbaby by him, never know what he was going to be, never know what he was going to look like, he took all of that away," Cox said.
Sarrias-Buelva is charged with second-degree murder, first-degree manslaughter and criminal possession of a weapon. No plea was entered during the arraignment.
On Thursday, the judge granted the prosecution's request to hold Sarrias-Buelvas behind bars without setting bail. The judge said it's necessary considering the seriousness of the charges and risk of flight.
----------
* Download the abc7NY app for breaking news alerts
Submit a tip or story idea to Eyewitness News
Have a breaking news tip or an idea for a story we should cover? Send it to Eyewitness News using the form below. If attaching a video or photo, terms of use apply.
