UTICA, NY (WUTR/WFXV/WPNY) – One of the two suspects in a shooting at a candlelight vigil in August 2022 has pled guilty in Oneida County Court on Friday, June 9.
36-year-old Willie Linder of Utica pled guilty to a charge of second-degree assault related to the August 2022 shooting. Linder also pled guilty to a charge of third-degree Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance, which was the result of a wiretap investigation between local, state, and federal police. Both charges are considered felonies.
Linder, along with another suspect, were arrested in February of 2023 in the investigation into the shooting. Police say that in that incident, a 12-year-old juvenile was struck with a bullet while attending a candlelight vigil with his mother on Whitesboro Street.