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The manager of upstate New York sandwich shop confessed to helping his former boss kill a coworker because of a dispute over money in 2019.
James Duffy, 35, pleaded guilty last month to a second-degree murder charge and is expected to testify against former shop owner Giorgios Kakavelos, 52, in a trial that has opening statements set for Wednesday.
Duffy told authorities he worked with Kakavelos to kill 22-year-old Allyzibeth Lamont on Oct. 28, 2019, then helped hide her body and dispose of evidence, such as the baseball bat he used in the crime.
Kakavelos allegedly owed Lamont money for working at his Johnstown eatery, Local Substation No. 9. Rather than pay her, he enlisted Duffy and the two planned her murder over three days, according to Duffy’s statement reported by the Daily Gazette.
But Kakavelos maintains his innocence and his attorney said police played Duffy “like a violin” in questioning. Duffy admitted to smoking crack and drinking alcohol in the days ahead of the murder and he killed Lamont in his own dispute over cash she owed him, Kakavelos’ attorney Kevin O’Brien said.
“Mr. Kakavelos walked in on a bloody, just terrible scene and Duffy threatened him and his family if he didn’t help him get rid of the body,” O’Brien told The Post. Kakaevlos had a wife and children and didn’t owe Lamont any money, he said.
“Like a child, Duffy caved and tried to bring somebody else into it,” he added. “If the government wants to use a drunk crackhead as their primary witness, that’s fine by me.”
Duffy’s attorney couldn’t be reached on Tuesday.
Duffy said on the night of the killing, he attacked Lamont with a bat while Kakavelos helped with a garbage bag, according to the Gazette. Duffy then used a hammer and choked her, Duffy’s statement said.
The two allegedly buried Lamont’s body in Malta after midnight in a shallow grave covered with cement, fertilizer and sticks.
In the days before the murder, Kakavelos loaded up on supplies like duct tape, bleach and detergent, according to an indictment cited by the Leader-Herald. He also paid Duffy $1,600 over three days, the Gazette said.
O’Brien said the items mentioned in the indictment were purchased for routine maintenance in Kakavelos’ business, but were used in the cleanup because he “was scared out of his mind” over what Duffy would do if the shop owner didn’t help him.
After Lamont’s disappearance, the two disposed of evidence and Kakavelos had the trunk of his Volkswagon Passat re-lined, cleaned and deodorized, according to the Leader-Herald.
Duffy and Kakavelos were arrested within days of Lamont’s disappearance and Duffy led cops to her body, reports said. In their initial indictments they faced life in prison without parole.
Duffy’s plea on April 30 came in exchange for a sentence of 18 years to life, Fox 23 reported.
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