Family of 3-year-old New York girl raped and murdered calls for death penalty for ‘heinous’ killer

The family of a three-year-old girl who was found dead and covered in blood after being raped in her parents’ home is now demanding the death penalty for the man who admitted to her murder last week.

Robert Fisher, 34, was arrested at the scene by police as he attempted to regain access to the crime scene and obstructed the investigation. Fisher changed his plea to guilty on Tuesday, admitting to the rape and murder of the girl.

Josephina Cunningham’s brother says he and his family will now seek the death penalty against Fisher. Jy’Quan Stewart, Josephina’s 23-year-old brother, told the US Sun: “For me, it’s not over. I still intend to seek the death penalty.”

READ MORE: Double murderer Wade Wilson demands retrial because death penalty law violates his rights

READ MORE: “Drunk driver” in horror accident in New York on July 4, in which three people died, “was a drug counselor”

“I want the world to see it. They need to be shocked and know that they can’t do something like that,” the brother said in an interview. “I want him to pay for what he did. I want him to get the death penalty,” the angry brother continued.

“People who commit these crimes must pay for it, they must get the death penalty. This crime was really heinous, it was really heinous.”

Click Here Follow Mirror US on Google News to stay up to date with all the latest news, sports and entertainment stories

Fisher had only been dating the child’s mother for a week when she decided to leave her new boyfriend to look after three-year-old Josephina at her family’s home in Rensselaer, New York, just outside of Albany, on July 7, 2023. When her mother returned, she found little Josephina covered in blood and bruises on the bed.

The little girl had been brutally raped and then murdered. She was taken to the hospital where she was pronounced dead.

Stewart said he was shocked when Fisher changed his confession two weeks before the trial. He added that Fisher likely changed his confession because he could not bear to face the family in the courtroom.

The brother said he had concerns from the moment he met his mother’s boyfriend. “When I first met him, something felt weird inside me. It was a little weird. I just had a feeling in my gut,” Stewart said.

“I’ve never seen my mother with a white man. Maybe that’s why, but I never spoke to her (about their relationship) – it was like she was hypnotized,” he added. “She was too in love with him. It was pretty weird actually.”