Aiden Fucci Florida teen, 16, pleads guilty to stabbing Tristyn Bailey, 13 year old cheerleader 114 times to death. Evidence against teen was overwhelming with girl incurring no less than 49 defensive stab wounds as she fought for her life.
A Florida teenage boy who was set to stand trial for the 2021 murder of 13-year-old cheerleader, Tristyn Bailey, on Monday pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in her fatal stabbing.
Aiden Fucci, 16, entered the plea in St. Johns County Courthouse just before jury selection was set to begin, News4Jax reported.
‘I’m sorry to the Bailey family and to my family,’ Fucci said after changing his plea from not guilty the media outlet reported.
The teen who until Monday morning had resolutely pled not guilty shocked followers of the murder trial with his about face plea change.
One of Fucci’s lawyers said that several defense offers had all been rejected by the state.
Teen cheerleader stabbed 114 times, with at least 49 defensive stab wounds
The judge noted it was a ‘straight plea deal’ meaning it was not negotiated with prosecutors. The judge also asked Fucci if he is satisfied with how he was represented in court and Fucci said he was.
Fucci now faces a sentence of life in prison with a minimum of 40 years behind bars.
Fucci who was fourteen at the time of the murder was charged as an adult with first-degree murder in the stabbing of the 13-year-old cheerleader, who was found dead in the woods near her house on Mother’s Day 2021.
Tristyn was found dead on May 9, 2021, after her parents reported her missing.
Tristyn had been stabbed 114 times, with at least 49 stab wounds to her hands, arms, and head that were ‘defensive in nature,’ 7th Judicial Circuit State Attorney R.J. Larizza, told reporters at a press conference at the time.
Fucci was arrested on May 10, 2021, and subsequently made several ‘admissions’ of guilt, according to his arrest report.
The evidence against Fucci was mounting heading into the trial.
‘Karma’
The medical examiner determined the tip of a knife found in a nearby pond was found in Bailey’s scalp. Investigators said other evidence including blood and DNA linked Fucci to Bailey’s death.
Surveillance footage also captured Tristyn and Fucci taking a walk in a neighborhood in St. Johns County, Florida, around 1.14 am on May 9. Soon after the girl was reported missing by her family before a macabre discovery of her body was found later that evening.
The 13-year-old’s body was found near a retention pond by a neighbor in the evening while running in the wooded area. The teen girl had the word ‘Karma’ written on her ankle. Also, a smiley face was drawn on the inside of her right ankle while the scribbling did in blue ink on the left.
Authorities said they found Fucci’s clothing stained with blood as well as a hunting knife believed to be the murder weapon in a nearby pond.
Days before Tristyn’s killing, Fucci told friends that he planned to kill someone, though he didn’t specify whom, Larizza said.
‘He indicated to witnesses that he was going to kill someone by taking them in the woods and stabbing them,’ Larizza said.
‘Hey guys has anybody seen Tristyn lately?’
After his arrest, Fucci posted to social media a selfie of himself in the back of a patrol car referencing Tristyn. In the photo, Fucci is seen giving a peace sign. The photo has the caption: ‘Hey guys has anybody seen Tristyn lately?’
During a news conference in 2021, State Attorney RJ Larizza said that charging Fucci as an adult was the only choice. ‘Every time that arm went back and every time that arm went down, that was premeditation,’ Larizza said. He further indicated that his office would seek life in prison for Fucci without parole.
During a pre-trial conference via video from a room in the Duval County Jail, Fucci was also heard talking about demons, saying, ‘Please don’t let the demons take my soul. The demons are going to take my soul away.’
Fucci then asked, ‘What’s going on?’ and then says, ‘Why am I here? I just want to talk to my mom and dad. What’s going? What’s going on?’
Fucci’s mother, Crystal Smith, is charged with tampering with evidence in her son’s murder case, allegedly for washing blood off her son’s jeans.
Fucci is scheduled to return to court on Feb. 23 for a hearing to discuss sentencing.
Not immediately clear is what led to the the then 14 year old boy so savagely and egregiously murdering his female teen victim.
