A Bronx panhandler involved in the fatal stabbing of a Bronx teenager in June was arrested Thursday, according to police.
Eustace James, 20, of Fordham Heights, has been charged with robbery, criminal possession of a weapon, and two counts of second-degree murder following a confrontation he had with 17-year-old Carl Ducasse, police said.
James and a fellow panhandler, Deondre Robinson, approached Ducasse shortly before midnight on June 17, after he had just bought a milkshake a block from his Mount Hope apartment, according to Duccasse’s family.
When Duccasse refused to give the men any money, they grabbed him and tried to steal his cell phone. One of the panhandlers stabbed him in the chest during the struggle, then both men fled, according to police.
Ducasse was rushed to St. Barnabas Hospital, where he died.
Six days after the stabbing, police found and arrested 17-year-old Robinson, of Brooklyn. He was charged with murder.
Carlo said his son was just weeks away from his high school graduation.
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Ducasse’s family describes panhandling as a problem in the Mount Hope neighborhood where they live.
