AIDEN Fucci has been charged with second-degree murder in connection with the death of 13-year-old Tristyn Bailey.
The 14-year-old is the only suspect in the murder of his classmate.
St Johns County Sheriff's Office announced on Tuesday that Tristyn's cause of death was "sharp force trauma by stabbing".
Fucci was arrested last Sunday (May 9) and is being held at the Department of Juvenile Justice.
Aiden and Tristyn both attended Patriot Oaks Academy in St. Johns, Florida.
A photograph that was circulating on social media following Tristyn's death appeared to have been posted on Aiden's Snapchat account showing him in the back of a cop car, holding up a peace sign with the caption "hey guys has inybody [sic] seen Tristyn lately".
St. Johns County Sheriff Robert Hardwick confirmed Monday morning that Tristyn's body has been found.
Hardwick said that her body was discovered fully clothed.
Tristyn was last seen on Sunday, May 9 at roughly 1.15am near the North Amenity Center, according to reports.
She was reported missing by her family at 10am that morning beginning a 16-hour search for the teenager.
Read our Aiden Fucci live blog below for the very latest news and updates…
- Cybele Mayes-Osterman
AIDEN FUCCI FATHER JAILED FOR CHILD ABUSE
Now, The Sun can reveal Fucci's father Jason, 36, has an extensive rap sheet, including a stint in jail after being charged with lewd or lascivious battery and child abuse in 2003.
Filings obtained from Duval County Court for the first count show Fucci Sr., who was 18 at the time, was guilty of engaging in sexual activity with a 15-year-old female at his home.
The second count showed he "did knowingly or wilfully abuse a child by intentionally committing an act that could reasonably be expected to result in physical or mental injury to a person under the age of 18 years."
Fucci Sr. was sentenced to two years probation but was later jailed for 14 months after violating the conditions, with 158 days given as credit.
- Jon Rogers
HAS FUCCI ADMITTED GUILT?
Although he has been charged with second-degree murder, Fucci has not yet entered a plea.
However, he reportedly told police several contradicting stories under questioning.
The 14-year-old provided an initial statement, however officials said this changed several times and that he made several “admissions.”
After officers executed a search warrant at Fucci’s home, the report said that officers found items that tested positive for the presence of blood.
- Jon Rogers
LAW EXPERT QUESTIONS FUCCI’S PAST
Shannon Schott, one of eight board-certified juvenile law experts in North Florida, told CBS47 she believes troubling signs in Aiden Fucci may have existed long before Tristyn’s alleged murder.
“Kids don’t kill other kids but for trauma.” Schott said.
“When the child commits a crime, the village has failed. I do have questions about what neighbors observed, what his parents observed and what the school observed.”
The Sun exclusively revealed the Fucci’s father, Jason Fucci, has an extensive rap sheet, including convictions for child abuse and assault.
- Jon Rogers
- TODAY, 04:09CHEERLEADER’S BODY FOUND AT PONDThe “horrifically stabbed” body of Tristyn Bailey was reportedly found at a pond.Tristyn Bailey was reported missing by her family on Sunday morning after a surveillance video allegedly showed her going for a walk with another person. Her body was discovered in a wooded area by a neighbor out for a walk eight hours later. Police had cordoned off several sites of interest including a retention pond in a residential area a little more than a quarter of a mile from Bailey’s home. Read the full story here.
SICK HISTORY
The father of teen murder suspect Aiden Fucci was jailed for child abuse years before his son allegedly stabbed classmate Tristyn Bailey to death, The Sun can exclusively reveal.
Jason Fucci appeared via Zoom for his son's hearing this week, along with Aiden's mother, Crystal Smith, during which their 14-year-old son seemed relaxed and sat with his hands behind his head.
Now, The Sun can reveal Fucci's father Jason, 36, has an extensive rap sheet, including a stint in jail after being charged with lewd or lascivious battery and child abuse in 2003.
Filings obtained from Duval County Court for the first count show Fucci Sr., who was 18 at the time, was guilty of engaging in sexual activity with a 15-year-old female at his home.
The second count showed he "did knowingly or wilfully abuse a child by intentionally committing an act that could reasonably be expected to result in physical or mental injury to a person under the age of 18 years."
KEY CLUE?
An alleged killer teenager was seen carrying his shoes in a video on the night of a cheerleader's murder.
An arrest report, obtained by First Coast News, alleged that security footage showed two teenagers walking at 1.45am. However, less than two hours later, at 3.27am, only one person was seen walking – holding a pair of shoes.
The report said that Fucci's mother mentioned something about him carrying his shoes, however, he told her it was because his feet hurt.
While executing a search warrant at Fucci's home, the report said that officers found items that tested positive for the presence of blood.
The 14-year-old provided an initial statement, however officials said this changed several times and that he made several "admissions."
'HORRIFIC' KILLING
A teenager's "spontaneous statements" will be used against him in a cheerleader's alleged murder amid a push to charge him as an adult, the Sheriff has said.
During an interview with Fox News on Thursday morning, Sheriff Rob Hardwick dubbed the incident a "horrific murder."
Discussing the police's interactions with Fucci, Hardwick insisted that "the suspect in the very beginning was very cooperative" when the situation was being dealt with as a missing person case.
However, "he said some spontaneous other statements that will be used against him," Hardwick claimed.
The 14-year-old provided an initial statement, however, officials said this changed several times and that he made several "admissions."
THEY HAVE 'THE DISCRETION'
A 14-year-old boy is accused of stabbing a classmate to death in Florida in a brutal crime earlier this month.
Aiden Fucci, charged with the murder of 13-year-old Tristyn Bailey, could be tried as an adult.
Prosecutors have the option of charging the young teen as an adult, and a decision is expected within a few weeks.
Authorities believe Tristyn was stabbed a "horrific" amount of times.
WHAT HAPPENED TO TRISTYN?
Tristyn was last seen in St Johns, Florida on Sunday morning, May 9, after being reported missing by her family at 10am.
Her body was found by a neighbor in the woods near her Durbin Crossing home.
Hardwick made an announcement explaining that he believes Tristyn's body has been found.
He also confirmed that her body was fully clothed, but her cause of death was not revealed.
Her sister had earlier posted on social media asking for any information about the cheerleader’s disappearance.
She wrote: “Please check your kids’ accounts for anything that can help us.
“Help us locate our sweet sassy cheer star!! I need my blonde-haired twin back.”
- Jon Rogers
WHAT IS THE SNAPCHAT PHOTO OF AIDEN FUCCI?
A photo of Aiden Fucci is resurfacing on social media of him behind a cop car holding up a peace sign with the caption: “hey guys has inybody [sic] seen Tristyn lately."
During a police press conference on Monday, May 10, Sheriff Robert Hardwick said officials were aware of the photo.
Hardwick said: “I will say our real-time intelligence center really has captured all these videos as much as we can. We monitor it.
“Unfortunately, with some of these things that are actually maybe you think is detrimental to the case actually help us to in the case and actually don’t actually hurt the case because we’re collecting this media.”
- Jon Rogers
BRUTAL DEATH
The “horrifically stabbed” body of Tristyn Bailey was reportedly found at a pond, as calls grow for her alleged murderer Aiden Fucci to be charged as an adult.
Hundreds of thousands of people have signed an online petition calling for the 14-year-old to have his charges upped from second- to first-degree murder.
He was charged with the brutal murder of the 13-year-old teenager hours after her body was discovered with “significant injury to her head” and other signs of trauma, officials said.
Bailey was reported missing by her family on Sunday morning after a surveillance video allegedly showed her going for a walk with another person.
Her body was discovered in a wooded area by a neighbor out for a walk eight hours later.
- Jon Rogers
CONTINUED
The posters are using the hashtag #FreeAiden.
Sheriff Rob Hardwick told WJXT his detectives have been bombarded with "hundreds and hundreds of leads."
"We’re trying to figure out is this real, is this legit, is this coming from a person that’s a possible witness?" he said. "We’re going to find out with every single lead."
He added that crime analysts have identified some of the accounts and that there are witnesses who still need to be questioned, potentially altering the case. According to the Florida State Statutes, someone could be charged with interfering with the investigation if it's resisting an officer or providing false information.
Attorney Gene Nichols, not affiliated with the case, told the outlet: "Can somebody go and post something stupid on the internet, which is what’s happening here? Yes.
- Jon Rogers
'WE'LL FIND YOU'
Aiden trolls who have claimed to be involved in the death of Tristyn Bailey "could do prison time for interfering in murder probe."
Police say they have been inundated with reports about trolls claiming to be part of the 13-year-old's death and that they are investigating every tip.
The local news team, WJXT I-TEAM, has also been flooded with reports of people on social media claiming they were involved in the girl's death.
Some of the posts taunt the victim's family and friends. The cheerleader's social media accounts were also targeted by vile trolls.
One post shows a picture of a bloody knife, which they claim was used in her murder.
- Jon Rogers
SHERIFF’S OFFICE SAYS THERE COULD BE MORE ARRESTS IN CASE
St Johns County Sheriff Robert Hardwick told Action News that even though the department arrested a suspect in Tristyn Bailey’s murder, there is still a “long way to go” in the investigation.
“This case does not end with the unfortunate death of Tristyn and it doesn’t end with the arrest of our suspect,” the sheriff said.
“We have a long way to go.”
He also told the outlet there could be additional “forthcoming arrests” in the case.
- Jon Rogers
‘THIS IS A COLD-BLOODED MURDER’
Sheriff Rob Hardwick branded Tristyn Bailey’s death as a “cold-blooded murder”.
“This is a cold-blooded murder of a 13-year-old young girl who did not deserve to die,” he told WJXT
“That being said, I don’t wanna mention the number of times but it is horrific. It is horrible.
“And the word accident is nowhere involved in this case.”
- Jon Rogers
TROLLS SPAMMED TRISTYN’S INSTAGRAM AFTER HER MURDER
Instagram removed disturbing comments from the murdered teen’s page after it was targeted by trolls on Monday.
The cruel comments, posted hours after her body was found by police, targeted her clothing.
“You would still be alive if u didn’t wear that outfit,” one troll wrote. “Ya’ll women gotta dress smarter.”
- Jon Rogers
CHEERLEADER'S BODY FOUND AT POND
The “horrifically stabbed” body of Tristyn Bailey was reportedly found at a pond.
Tristyn Bailey was reported missing by her family on Sunday morning after a surveillance video allegedly showed her going for a walk with another person.
Her body was discovered in a wooded area by a neighbor out for a walk eight hours later.
Police had cordoned off several sites of interest including a retention pond in a residential area a little more than a quarter of a mile from Bailey’s home.
Read the full story here.
- Jon Rogers
WHERE DID AIDEN FUCCI GO TO SCHOOL?
Aiden Fucci and Tristyn Bailey both attended Patriot Oaks Academy in St Johns County.
Patriot Oaks Academy runs from kindergarten to eighth grade and serves about 1,500 students.
According to its website, the school contains a community that "fosters character development, independence and a lifelong love of learning."
The school was one of two new ones to open in 2014 in St John's County. Valley Ridge Academy also launched the same year.
- Jon Rogers
AIDEN FUCCI'S FATHER'S CRIMINAL HISTORY
Jason Fucci has has an extensive rap sheet, including a stint in jail after being charged with lewd or lascivious battery and child abuse in 2003.
Fucci Sr. was sentenced to two years probation but was later jailed for 14 months after violating the conditions, with 158 days given as credit.
As well as the child abuse charges, he also has charges for theft, driving with a suspended license, and was booked for battery in 2016.
Cops claimed Fucci Sr. got into a fight at a gas station with a couple while his son was present, although it is not known if this was young Aiden.
According to documents obtained by The Sun, he was sentenced to six months probation, which was terminated early, and ordered to attend anger management classes.
- Jon Rogers
WHAT EVIDENCE DO PROSECUTORS HAVE?
Very few details have been released about the evidence investigators had to led them to believe that Aiden Fucci was responsible for Tristyn Bailey’s murder.
According to Fucci’s arrest report, a search of his bedroom turned up multiple “items of evidentiary value,” including pieces of clothing that gave presumptive positive tests for the presence of blood.
Fucci gave conflicting statements but made “several admissions,” according to the report. Exactly what he told investigators was redacted from a copy of the document made public Tuesday.
- Jon Rogers
HAS FUCCI ADMITTED GUILT?
Although he has been charged with second-degree murder, Fucci has not yet entered a plea.
However, he reportedly told police several contradicting stories under questioning.
The 14-year-old provided an initial statement, however officials said this changed several times and that he made several "admissions."
After officers executed a search warrant at Fucci's home, the report said that officers found items that tested positive for the presence of blood.
- Bernadette Giacomazzo
SPREADING CHEER
A cheerleading squad in northern Florida is raising money to help Tristyn Bailey's family.
Bailey, who was the captain of her seventh-grade team's cheer squad, left a positive impact on her local cheer community.
And the Durbin Creek cheer community has decided to sell T-shirts in her honor to raise money to help the family.
“She was excellent, she just kept pushing herself to be better all the time.” Tanya White, a cheer commissioner who worked with Bailey for two years, said to 104.5 WOKV-FM.
- Jon Rogers
FUCCI FACES LIFE IN JAIL
Aiden Fucci could face life in jail if he is found guilty of the murder of Tristyn Bailey.
If the 14-year-old is charged as an adult, he could be sentenced to life in jail for the second-degree murder charges.
The state attorney in Florida will ultimately decide whether the teen should be tried as a juvenile or an adult in the case.
- Jon Rogers
LAW EXPERT QUESTIONS FUCCI’S PAST
Shannon Schott, one of eight board-certified juvenile law experts in North Florida, told CBS47 she believes troubling signs in Aiden Fucci may have existed long before Tristyn’s alleged murder.
“Kids don’t kill other kids but for trauma.” Schott said.
“When the child commits a crime, the village has failed. I do have questions about what neighbors observed, what his parents observed and what the school observed.”
The Sun exclusively revealed the Fucci’s father, Jason Fucci, has an extensive rap sheet, including convictions for child abuse and assault.
- Jon Rogers
AIDEN FUCCI’S SNAPCHAT POST EXPLAINED
A photo of Aiden Fucci is resurfacing on social media of him behind a cop car holding up a peace sign with the caption: “hey guys has inybody [sic] seen Tristyn lately.”
During a police press conference on Monday, May 10, Sheriff Robert Hardwick said officials were aware of the photo.
“I will say our real-time intelligence center really has captured all these videos as much as we can. We monitor it,” Hardwick said.
“Unfortunately, with some of these things that are actually maybe you think is detrimental to the case actually help us to in the case and actually don’t actually hurt the case because we’re collecting this media.”
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