88-year-old sentenced to life in prison for murdering, dismembering Brooklyn woman in 2022
A man was sentenced to life in prison Wednesday for murdering and dismembering a woman in Brooklyn in 2022.
It's the third time Harvey Marcelin, 88, has been convicted of killing a woman.
2022 murder
The Brooklyn District Attorney said Susan Leyden, 68, was seen on surveillance video entering Marcelin's apartment on Feb. 27, 2022, but she was never seen leaving.
Around the time Leyden disappeared, officials said Marcelin was seen on surveillance video buying a saw and cleaning supplies at a Home Depot.
Surveillance video taken on March 2, 2022, shows Marcelin rolling a wheeled shopping cart containing a black plastic bag near his apartment, officials said. The next day, Leyden's torso was found inside the same black plastic bag, which had been left on the street.
Police then searched Marcelin's apartment, where they said they found more of Leyden's remains, along with blood, cleaning supplies, a hammer and the box from an electric saw.
The medical examiner determined Leyden died from blunt force trauma to the head and other physical injuries.
The Brooklyn DA said Leyden and Marcelin lived in the same Bronx shelter in 2019, but no other details are known about their relationship.
Marcelin's previous arrests
According to state records, Marcelin was convicted of murder in October 1963 for fatally shooting a woman. He was sentenced to 20 years to life in prison, and released in 1984.
Two years later, in 1986, records show Marcelin was convicted of manslaughter for stabbing a woman to death. He was again sentenced to prison, and he was released in 2019.
Marcelin was out on parole at the time of the 2022 murder.
In May 2026, Marcelin was convicted of first-degree murder, tampering with physical evidence and concealment of a human corpse in connection to Leyden's death. His life sentence does not include the possibility of parole.
"[Marcelin] must be locked away, and today's sentence ensures that he will never be able to hurt anyone else again," DA Eric Gonzalez said in a statement, in part. "I hope this outcome provides Susan's family and loved ones with a measure of justice and some comfort as they continue to grieve."
