Cortlandt Manor Man Charged With Murder in Drug Deal Gone Sour

Two Westchester men have been charged with murder and a slate of other felonies linked to a drug deal gone sour in Greenburgh earlier this year.

Daniel Forte, a 26-year-old Cortlandt Manor man, and Enrique Ansell, a 26-year-old Sleepy Hollow resident, are facing a total of 13 charges related to the January 26 incident.

The two men were involved in a marijuana robbery at the intersecton of Oak and Warren Avenues that evening in January, police said. A group of men arrived with the drug, and Forte and Ansell insisted the pot be weighed.

As the group walked toward a nearby stoop to weigh the drugs, Forte is accussed of pulling out a handgun and striking one of the sellers, Kujtim Rushiti. The victim called for his friends, who ran to his aid, but not before Forte fired a shot into the man's neck, police said.

Rushiti's friends dragged him into their car and phoned police. Rushiti died soon after at Westchester Medical Center.

Police then pounced on clues at the crime scene, and using witness interviews and cell phone tracking were able to arrest Forte and Ansell.

Forte faces a maximum sentence of life in state prison, and Ansell faces 25 years to life.

Both men remain in jail; the next court date is set for June 11.

The full charges

Daniel Forte of 817 Terrence Place, Cortlandt Manor:

• one count of Murder in the First Degree, a class “A-1” Felony,
• two counts of Murder in the Second Degree, class “A-2” Felonies,
• two counts of Robbery in the First Degree, class “B” Felonies,
• two counts of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree, class “C” Felonies,
• one count of Robbery in the Second Degree, a class “C” Felony.

• one count of Murder in the Second Degree, a class “A-2” Felony,
• two counts of Robbery in the First Degree, class “B” Felonies,
• one count of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree, a class “C” Felony,
• one count of Robbery in the Second Degree, a class “C” Felony