Pa. man sentenced to life for fatally stabbing Wendy’s co-worker nearly 50 times, dumping body
06/06/2023 12:51 pm PDT
BENSALEM TOWNSHIP, Pa. (TCD) -- A judge has sentenced a 31-year-old man for violently stabbing his co-worker over 40 times, running him over in his car, and dumping the victim’s body.
The Bucks County District Attorney’s Office announced June 1 that Dominique Harris was sentenced to life in prison for killing 54-year-old Michael Pickens in 2022. A jury convicted Harris in April of first-degree murder and possession of an instrument of crime.
According to the statement, early in the morning on March 30, 2022, Pickens was finishing up his shift at Wendy’s when Harris, who was "lying in wait," attacked him. Harris had reportedly been fired from Wendy’s two months prior to the attack following an altercation with Pickens. Harris chased Pickens down the street and caught up with him in a nearby parking lot. Pickens attempted to defend himself.
The District Attorney’s Office said Pickens suffered 46 stab wounds, with more than half of those hitting his head and neck. Some even punctured his lung.
Harris reportedly fled the parking lot but returned minutes later in his car. He ran over Pickens twice, then "loaded Pickens into the backseat and dumped his body a few miles away."
Bensalem Police discovered Pickens' body the next day near the Cornwell Heights Train Station Park and Ride and said his body was covered by one of Harris' jackets.
Judge Raymond F. McHugh told Harris at the sentencing hearing, "What you did was ruthless, it was unnecessary, and it was criminal."
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