A young CVS employee who was fatally stabbed while working on Christmas night was only there because he had agreed to cover a shift for a friend, according to his grieving family.
Edeedson Cine, just 23 years old, was working behind the counter at a CVS in Lindenhurst on the evening of Dec. 25 when he was suddenly attacked. Police say officers responded to the store around 6:50 p.m. and found Cine suffering from a stab wound to the chest. He was rushed to the hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
Cine’s brother told News 12 Long Island that the shift was not originally his — he had stepped in to help out a coworker on Christmas night.
Investigators with the Suffolk County Police Department said the suspect fled the store on foot after the attack. Authorities later arrested John Pilaccio, 43, in connection with the killing, according to reports from News 12, The New York Times, and CBS News. Police say Pilaccio has been charged with second-degree murder and has pleaded not guilty.
“It appears this poor kid went to work on Christmas, and he was assaulted while he was working behind the counter in the store,” Suffolk County Police Commissioner Kevin Catalina told CBS.
Prosecutors allege Pilaccio entered the store and immediately attacked Cine. Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney told Newsday that surveillance video captured the horrifying moment.
“The first thing he did when he got up to the cashier was to attack him,” Tierney said. “The crime is captured on the video.”
Cine’s death has devastated his family, who described him as selfless and brave. His father, Edeedson Cine Sr., told the New York Post his son was always willing to help others, no matter the cost.
“He was the kind of person who would step in front of a bullet for anyone,” he said. “He would volunteer for the tough assignments. He was simple, and I loved that about my son.”
In the days since the tragedy, an online GoFundMe created to support Cine’s family has raised more than $90,000, as friends, customers, and strangers mourn a young man who went to work on Christmas — and never came home.
Really did CVS need to be opened on Christmas day