A Long Island man is accused of plunging a crowbar into the skull of a 45-year-old man, killing him in front of multiple witnesses — including the victim’s young daughter — officials announced Tuesday.
Darrell Trent, 46, of Bellport, was indicted for second-degree murder for the beating death of Carlos Bonaparte, according to Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney.
The brutal act of violence unfolded in the early hours of May 18. Bonaparte was standing outside his residence in East Patchogue with his daughter when his girlfriend and two of her cousins arrived, investigators said.
The victim’s girlfriend, who hasn’t been publicly identified, got into a verbal altercation with one of the cousins, who then called the defendant to the scene, prosecutors said in a news release.
A few minutes later, Trent allegedly “pulled up outside of the home, exited his vehicle with what appeared to be a crowbar, and intentionally plunged the claw end of it through Bonaparte’s skull and approximately one inch into his brain,” investigators said. He was transported to Long Island Community Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
Trent fled the scene but was arrested in Shaker Heights, Ohio, five days later.
He was arraigned at First District Court in Central Islip on Monday. He pleaded not guilty and was ordered held without bail, online court records show.
A request for comment from his attorney, Matthew Touhey, wasn’t immediately returned Tuesday morning.
Trent is due back in court on July 2, officials said. He faces 15 years to life behind bars, if convicted.
