Cousin Charged with 5-Year-Old's Murder

Tiffany VanAlstyne, the cousin of Kenneth White, faces a charge of second-degree murder in the 5-year-old’s death, according to news reports.

She was arraigned in Knox Town Court and sent to the Albany County jail without bail.

Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple told news outlets that the 19-year-old strangled her cousin and put his body in the snow in a culvert near their home. Then she called her mother and recounted a story of two masked kidnappers who had taken the boy away.

Police put out an AMBER Alert that spanned three states; but a very different picture began to emerge as the investigation got underway.

The Albany Times Union said Apple was close to tears at his news conference today, saying the boy was treated “like a piece of trash.”

White lived with his aunt, Brenda VanAlstyne, Tiffany’s mother, who was legal guardian for him and his twin and younger sisters. His mother lives in Amsterdam, NY and his father in Massachusetts, according to news reports.

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