FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, May 8, 2026
Elder Parolee Convicted of Murdering and Dismembering
Brooklyn Woman, Then Discarding Her Remains
Torso and Leg were Discovered on Street Inside Plastic Bags,
Additional Body Parts Recovered from Defendant’s Apartment
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez today announced that an 87-year-old parolee has been convicted of first-degree murder and other charges for killing a Brooklyn woman whose body parts were discovered inside and in the vicinity of the defendant’s East New York apartment.
District Attorney Gonzalez said, “This conviction holds the defendant accountable for the cruel and reprehensible murder of Susan Leyden. Following the senseless murder, the defendant desecrated the victim’s remains in a manner that truly shocks the conscience. I hope Ms. Leyden’s family finds a measure of solace in this guilty verdict, which ensures this defendant will never walk free again.”
The District Attorney identified the defendant as Harvey Marcelin, 87, of East New York, Brooklyn. The defendant was convicted yesterday afternoon of first-degree murder, tampering with physical evidence and concealment of a human corpse following one hour of deliberations after a jury trial before Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Danny Chun. The defendant faces a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole when sentenced on June 10, 2026.
The District Attorney said that, according to the evidence, surveillance footage taken on February 27, 2022, showed the victim, 68-year-old Susan Leyden, entering the defendant’s apartment on Pennsylvania Avenue in East New York. She was never seen leaving the apartment alive. Additional surveillance footage showed the defendant rolling a wheeled shopping bag containing a black plastic bag on March 2. The victim’s torso was discovered in that bag in the early morning hours of March 3.
In a subsequent search of the defendant’s apartment, police discovered the victim’s head and limbs, as well as blood, cleaning supplies, a hammer, and the box from an electric saw. On March 7, one of the victim’s legs was found near a garbage can about three blocks away. In addition, surveillance video showed the defendant purchasing a saw and cleaning supplies in a Manhattan Home Depot around the time of the victim’s disappearance.
The Medical Examiner determined that the victim, who resided in Clinton Hill, suffered blunt force trauma to the head and other physical injuries to her body. The investigation revealed that the defendant and the victim lived in the same shelter in the Bronx in 2019, but the nature of their relationship is unclear.
On October 16, 1963, the defendant was convicted of first-degree murder in Manhattan, forming the basis of the first-degree murder charge in this case.
The case was investigated by New York City Police Department Detectives Thomas Pisano, of Brooklyn North Homicide Squad, and David Quattrocchi of the 75th Precinct Detective Squad. Paralegal Supervisor Jannette Ayala and Paralegal Monika Rostkowska, of the District Attorney’s Homicide Bureau, assisted in the investigation.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Leila Rosini, Chief of the District Attorney’s Homicide Bureau and Senior Assistant District Attorney Viviane Dussek, of the Homicide Bureau.
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