On a Sunday evening in Syracuse, New York, a call brought police to a distressing scene. At approximately 10:40 p.m. on June 23, 2024, officers responded to the intersection of East Fayette Street and Westmoreland Avenue, where they found Jahliek Stewart, a 23-year-old Black man, lying unresponsive in the street. He had a severe, bleeding wound to his torso.
First responders rendered medical aid before he was rushed to Upstate University Hospital in critical condition.
Despite the efforts of the medical staff, Stewart died from his injuries the following day, June 24. The initial report to police was of a shooting, but as detectives from the Criminal Investigations Division and the Homicide Unit began their work, the facts of the case became clearer. Through numerous interviews, an extensive canvass of the neighborhood, the execution of several search warrants, and a thorough analysis of evidence, investigators determined that Jahliek Stewart had not been shot but had been fatally stabbed.
The investigation quickly led police to identify a suspect, 22-year-old Ashley Roche. On June 25, 2024, Roche voluntarily turned herself in to the Syracuse Police Department’s Homicide Unit at the Public Safety Building. She was taken into custody and detained at the Onondaga County Justice Center. Authorities initially charged her with second-degree manslaughter and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon.
The case concluded when Ashley Roche pleaded guilty to manslaughter for her role in the fatal stabbing. In March 2026, a judge sentenced Roche to 13 years in prison. This sentence marked the final legal development in the case of Jahliek Stewart's death.
