12-Year-Old Allegedly Beats 70-Year-Old To Death Then Steals His Car

KEY POINTS

A 12-year-old boy and 18-year-old man in Pennsylvania have been charged in the death of Chung Yan Chin
The two are accused of fatally beating Chin and stealing his car
Authorities have issued a warrant for a third suspect, who remains at large

A 12-year-old boy was among a group of youths accused of fatally beating an elderly man during a carjacking in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in December last year.

The unnamed boy now faces several charges in connection to the death of 70-year-old Chung Yan Chin, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

The boy and several others had approached Chin on the 3000 block of Teesdale Street in Mayfair just after 7 p.m. on Dec. 2, 2021. The group allegedly knocked the elderly man to the ground as well as punched and kicked him in the face before they stole his Toyota Camry.

Police found Chin three hours later unresponsive and bleeding from his face and head, a report by NBC News said.

Chin was hospitalized in critical condition with facial fractures and a brain injury and died of his injuries on Dec. 21, according to court papers.

Police arrested 18-year-old John Nusslein on Jan. 14 over the incident, while the 12-year-old boy was taken into custody on Feb. 3.

Both the teen and the boy have been charged with murder, robbery, conspiracy and weapons violations. Additionally, they also face charges of evidence tampering for allegedly removing the license plate on Chin's car after they stole the vehicle.

An arrest warrant has been issued for a third suspect — 16-year-old Qiyam Muhammad — who remains at large.

The boy and Nusslein are currently being held without bail. A preliminary hearing for the former is scheduled for next week, while the latter's next court appearance is in April.

Attorneys representing the defendants did not respond to requests for comment.

News of the arrests comes less than two weeks after a 60-year-old man was shot by suspected carjackers in Northeast Philadelphia.

George Briscella was pulling into the driveway of his mother's home on Afton Street on the night of Feb. 6 when he was shot by three unidentified men with an assault-style rifle, police said. His vehicle, a 2022 RAV 4, was then allegedly stolen by the group.

Briscella, a Marine Corps veteran, was taken to the hospital, but he later died.

Homicide Captain Jason Smith believed the suspected carjacking to be a "crime of opportunity," but he also said it could have been a part of a series of similar incidents in Northeast Philadelphia that involved Toyota vehicles being carjacked.

Authorities have yet to retrieve Briscella's stolen car.