New Rochelle man sentenced to five years for slashing attack after bodega dispute

NEW YORK — A New Rochelle man has been sentenced to five years in prison for a violent slashing attack that followed an argument at a Bronx bodega, the Bronx District Attorney’s office announced.

Shamel Rodriguez, 34, was sentenced on October 22 by Bronx Supreme Court Justice Joseph McCormack. The sentence, which includes five years of post-release supervision, came after a jury convicted Rodriguez of second-degree assault in June.

According to court records, the attack occurred on September 10, 2019, at a bodega on Bryant Avenue. Rodriguez reportedly got into a dispute with another man, who responded by throwing a cup of soup at him. Rodriguez then pulled out a knife, chased the man, and slashed him three times across the arm.

The victim was transported to a nearby hospital, where he received 29 stitches to close his wounds. District Attorney Darcel Clark condemned the violence, stating, “The defendant brutally slashed a man who slighted him. Such explosive violence has been answered with a jury’s guilty verdict and a prison sentence.”

The sentencing concludes a case that began over five years ago and highlights the court’s stance on retaliatory violence in public settings.