In the winter of 1989, a horrific crime cut short the life of Barbara Chiles, a 42-year-old female bank manager described by her neighbors as a respectable woman. On February 24, 1989, she was found brutally murdered in her apartment at 95 West 195th Street in the Kingsbridge section of the Bronx. The shocking discovery was made after a wounded survivor, Serray Watson, managed to call for help.
Three armed men, targeting the son of one of the women over a supposed drug-related issue, had
initiated a violent kidnapping. They abducted Serray Watson and her friend, Rita Faulk, forcing them into a car and demanding to know the whereabouts of Kevin Chiles, Barbara's son. The assailants then proceeded to Barbara Chiles's residence. After tricking their way into her apartment, they handcuffed all three women together.
The apartment was ransacked in a search for money and drugs, but the intruders found little of value. In a cruel and senseless act of violence, the men turned up the volume on a television, covered the women's heads, and shot them. Barbara Chiles and Rita Faulk died at the scene. Serray Watson, despite being shot in the head, miraculously survived and was able to provide crucial information to the police.
The investigation led to the apprehension of two suspects, Felipe Concepcion and Thomas Cross. Concepcion was arrested at his mother's home in Connecticut, while Cross was captured three days later. The surviving victim, Serray Watson, was able to identify her attackers, and her vivid testimony proved overwhelming in court. Felipe Concepcion was subsequently convicted on multiple counts, including murder and kidnapping, and the conviction was upheld on appeal.
