On the same day a local teen was arraigned on a murder charge in connection with the brutal death of WABC newsman George Weber, officials released a written statement he made about what happened when he visited Weber's apartment.
Sixteen-year-old John Katehis pleaded not guilty Friday. He's accused of stabbing Weber 50 times at Weber's Brooklyn apartment in March.
Katehis' attorney used the word "child" nine times to describe his client during Friday's court appearance, but what the defendant described in those documents released Friday was hardly a night of childplay.
PDF Document: Read Katehis' Account of Confrontation (starts on page 10)
Katehis said he responded to a Craigslist ad Weber placed seeking "funky stuff" and for someone to smother him. He claimed Weber offered him a beer and some cocaine, and that that was the first time Katehis tried cocaine. "After a few minutes I started to feel jumpy," Katehis wrote in the statement.
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At one point, according to the teen, Weber said, "Let's see what's going on in the other room."
A short time later, Weber showed Katehis the bedroom and described what the teen needed to do to smother him. Katehis was hoping to make $60 for his efforts, but during the demonstration, Weber showed a knife, the teen wrote.
"He took it out just to show it to me, but I got nervous and grabbed for the knife," Katehis said. "As we were struggling for the knife, I cut my right hand index finger as well as smaller cuts on my other fingers. I was able to turn the knife back toward George and push it toward him, accidentally stabbing him in the neck.
"Later on, I saw on the Internet a story where they said George was stabbed 20 times, but I didn't remember stabbing him any other times," Katehis continued.
The rest of the document makes the teen seem cool under pressure, cleaning himself up and looking to change his clothes. He said he left a few minutes later, and threw the knife into some trees a block or two away.
As Weber's loved ones looked on, the defense asked for bail, a request that was denied so the judge can review more evidence.
