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Murderer of Menachem Stark Gets Slap on the Wrist in Sentencing; Whispers of Cover-Up Circulating

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A stunner in the courtroom during the sentencing of a stunning case as Kendall Felix was sentenced to a maximum of seven years in prison for his actions related to the grisly murder of Williamsburg Chasidic Jew Menachem Stark, the Brooklyn Eagle reports. Those who loved Stark most were distraught at the light sentencing that could let the conspirator back on the streets in just under three years.

By: Justin Thomas

“I feel that it’s way too little,” Stark’s sister-in-law Yenti Hershkovitz said. “The man ruined a living family’s life. No one asked him to burn the body. Cruel beyond words. I believe he deserves a lot more.” The crimes that are getting Felix locked up are second-degree conspiracy and first-degree hindering prosecution. According to court proceedings, Felix helped purchase gasoline and use it to set fire to the corpse of the brutally murdered Stark. Judge Danny Chun sentenced Felix to spend anywhere between 28 months to seven years behind bars. While seven years is a significant time to be locked away from society, keep in mind that most first and second-degree murder sentences, even some first-degree manslaughter sentences, result in life imprisonment. The judge did not want to go hard on a younger convict.

“I was also convinced that this defendant was not the mastermind for many, many reasons. This defendant is not the mastermind behind the planning to kidnap Mr. Stark in this case,” Chun said.

After his death in 2014, one that caused strife and pain within the community, the New York Post rubbed salt in the wounds in its coverage of the murder by suggesting that Stark garnered a lot of people who had reason to harm him, especially because of his debts. While the reporting was poor in taste, especially with his seven children still very much grieving with the loss of their father, this recent startling sentence of only a maximum of seven years in prison for Felix has some people wondering if there isn’t a larger cover-up at play. The thought is that Felix is more of a scapegoat than anything, taking the fall in a larger conspiracy meant to murder Stark as part of a hit.

Stark, a Williamsburg landlord who came under scrutiny for the questionable conditions of his buildings, was kidnapped by Kendel Felix and Erskine Felix — cousins of Kendall Felix — outside his Williamsburg office in January 2014.

Felix faced life in prison for Stark’s killing. Prosecutors described how Felix, a carpenter who had done some work for Stark, and “a team of kidnappers,” abducted Stark in an attempt to extort him for money.

The main evidence against Felix is a videotaped confession. According to the New York Times, “In the confession, parts of which were played during pretrial hearings, Mr. Felix described how he had been approached by his cousin Erskine Felix, another laborer who claimed that Mr. Stark owed him money, and had been persuaded to participate in a scheme to scare the landlord and recover the debt.”

Prosecutors from the Brooklyn district attorney’s office gave more information about Felix’s involvement, saying that Stark was forced into the minivan after a violent struggle on the street outside his office and drove him to the home of another relative of theirs named Irvine Henry.

Once Henry realized that Stark died, Felix and a fourth relative made their way to Great Neck, in order to try and burn the corpse in a trashcan, which they left once they torched it, according to prosecutors.

The New York Times reported that Stark was trying to escape but was ultimately killed by one of the conspirators after he sat on top of Stark’s chest. Felix and Stark once had a working relationship, but now Stark is dead and Felix is convicted of second-degree murder, the Brooklyn Eagle reports.

Stark left behind a widow, Bashie Stark, the lone parent of their seven children, was in tears at the hearing and spoke about what she remembers most about her beloved.

“His generosity knew no bounds, not only with money but with his kindness, his patience, his legendary smile,” she said. “The trauma from that night will never leave us.” In particular, she said the trauma of seeing her dead husband lying in a trash can in a botched burning attempt will “haunt” her for the rest of her life.

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