LOCKPORT, N.Y. (AP) - Two teenagers charged in the killing of a 5-year-old Western New York girl have pleaded not guilty at their arraignment.
Local media outlets report that John Robert Freeman Jr., who turns 17 Thursday, and 18-year-old Tyler Scott Best of Buffalo were arraigned Monday in separate Niagara County Court appearances held after they were indicted by a county grand jury.
Freeman pleaded not guilty to charges of second-degree murder and tampering with physical evidence in the slaying of Isabella Tennant, whose body was found in a trash container in the city of Niagara Falls on Aug 27.
Best pleaded not guilty to charges of hindering prosecution and tampering with physical evidence.
Authorities say Isabella was staying at her great-grandmother's home when Freeman, a family friend, strangled the girl and hid her body with the help of Best.
