BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) - A 20-year-old man has pleaded guilty to killing his teenage girlfriend's step-grandfather inside the victim's Buffalo apartment last year.
The Erie County District Attorney's Office says Romaine Jirdon, of Buffalo, pleaded guilty to a second-degree murder charge Wednesday, a year and four days after he beat and stabbed 58-year-old Thomas Heath to death.
Prosecutors say Heath was killed during an altercation inside the apartment he shared with his then-17-year-old step-granddaughter, Alexandria Heath. She also was charged with murder. The teen is being held in jail without bail while her case is pending.
Friends say Thomas Heath was raising his estranged wife's granddaughter from another relationship at the time he was killed.
Jirdon faces a maximum of 20 years to life in prison when he's sentenced Jan. 4.
