A Berne teenager allegedly killed her 5-year-old cousin and disposed of his body, before falsely reporting the boy was forcefully abducted from her home, according to police. “This was a tough one,” Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple said emotionally. “It’s sinful and it’s sad.” Authorities arrested Tiffany VanAlstyne, 19, Thursday evening, and charged her with murder in the second degree with intent to cause the death of another person, a felony. VanAlstyne was arraigned Friday afternoon, Dec. 19, in Knox Town Court. Police alleged VanAlstyne murdered Kenneth White, who was in her care, while at her home. She then allegedly dumped his body over a guardrail, off the side of a road near her home and used snow to cover him. An autopsy determined White’s cause of death to be asphyxiation due to strangulation. There was also blunt force trauma to his head, which occurred before his death. Police would not disclose what, if any, weapon was used, or how he was strangled. “There are a lot of people in this community with a heavy heart, sad that we’ve got a 5-year-old twin sister and 4-year-old little sister of Kenneth White, that they’ll never see their brother again,” said Apple. “At the same time angry that we have a had a 5-year-old taken from us in a senseless death, and, quite honestly, basically thrown away like a piece of trash.” Tiffany VanAlstyne initially claimed two masked intruders held her down and took the boy from her home, which lead to an Amber Alert being issued Thursday after. VanAlstyne’s mother, Brenda, was the legal guardian of White, who attended Berne-Knox-Westerlo Elementary School. Brenda was the boy’s aunt. White’s mother lives in Amsterdam and his father lives in Massachusetts. Apple said it would be “inappropriate” to disclosure why Brenda VanAlstyne was White’s legal guardian, but said she had been taking care of him for more than a year. She has been his legal guardian since September. Brenda was also the legal guardian of his twin sister, Cheyenne, and 4-year-old sister, Christine. “I am deeply concerned for the other two siblings and we will continue to follow that up,” said Apple. Authorities have a possible motive for the murder, but declined to share it with the media Friday. Police also said additional charges could be filed in the ongoing investigation. “We have more than enough evidence to go forward with a murder charge,” said Apple.
There is “nothing to indicate” anyone else was involved in the crime, according to Apple.
Brenda, Tiffany, the three kids and “another male” that was staying at the home had gone to the doctors Thursday morning, said police. Brenda and an 18-year-old boy went over to a local school to drop-off gifts for a holiday party. Police believe White was died somewhere around 12:45 p.m. and shortly after 1 p.m. The alleged murder is said to have occurred while Brenda was out on the errand. Police believe Tiffany would often watch the children. Around 1:10 p.m. on Thursday, a 911 call was received from Tiffany and Brenda claiming two men forcibly entered the mobile home. Tiffany claimed one man held her down as another man grabbed Kenneth, with the pair fleeing the home in a truck and heading towards Thatcher Park. Tiffany called her mother before she called police. Brenda indicated she was about four minutes from her home when she received the call from her daughter. Apple said Kenneth’s two siblings were in the home at the time of the alleged murder, but he was unaware if they were aware of the incident. Police interviewed Tiffany and determined there were no intruders and she had lied about the incident. Police would not disclose what Tiffany said during her interviews, but Apple said “things did not start to add up” and there were contradicting statements. Apple declined to answer if Tiffany confessed to the murder, or to describe her demeanor during interviews. Police canvassed the neighborhood around the home using a trained K-9 that picked up White’s scent and led police to discover the dead boy. He was located on the opposite side of the street from 994 Thatcher Park Road. “Everyone who had received this alert in the afternoon had committed and prayed to find this child alive,” county District Attorney David Soares said. “Unfortunately that was not the case.” White’s body was in a culvert, which was down an approximately three-foot decline from the road, and had been apparently intentionally covered in snow, according to Apple. He was approximately 40 yards in a southerly direction from the home where the incident allegedly occurred. “It’s absolutely heart wrenching. I’ve got three boys — I’m going to go home and hug them,” said Apple. “Certain cases stick with you your entire career and this is one of those cases.” Apple said the Amber Alert did “exactly what it was supposed to do,” and resulted in 80 to 100 leads. The alert was canceled later Thursday night after police had found the deceased boy. Apple said it was his call to not end the Amber Alert after police found the boy. Soares said there are a variety of agencies investigating in this case. The FBI and New York State Police are both involved in the investigation. Kenneth’s siblings are in the care of Child Protective Services. A town building inspector has been requested to determine if the home is safe to be occupied. Apple believes there could be some unsafe living conditions at the home. Joseph Natale, interim superintendent of Berne-Knox-Westerlo Central School District, wrote a letter to parents on Friday, Dec. 19, expressing condolences to the family and friends of White. Natale said he knows the school community will come together to make it through the tragedy. “A student death is a difficult and challenging situation that can generate a high level of anxiety and distress in some students,” Natale said in his letter. “During this time, as the school community processes the tragic news and copes with grief, we will offer counseling and bereavement support services to all of our students and staff.” The district has counselors, psychologists and social workers at its schools to provide support to students or staff members. Natale urged parents to contact the district if they feel their child needs to speak to a counselor or other adult. He encouraged parents to talk with their child about the death, which could help with the grieving process. “Discussing their thoughts and feelings about this situation is important in helping your child work through his or her grief,” Natale said in his letter. “We encourage parents to emphasize to their children that there may be rumors or false information in a situation like this one, and if they want to talk about something they hear, they should talk to an adult.” Apple said the community has reached out to offer support following Kenneth’s death.
“We have had an outpouring of support from the Berne-Knox-Westerlo schools, as well as several residents,” said Apple. “People have called to offer donations towards funeral services, burial plots.” Apple said tomorrow night, Dec. 20, the county Sheriff’s Office would be hosting an already planned Christmas party for around 248 children from the Hilltowns at its office in the Hamlet of Clarksville. “Kenneth and his two sisters were part of that party,” said Apple.
Timeline of the incident
Community grieves, offers support