BROOKLYN, N.Y. — A teen who set fire to a mattress in his apartment faces life in prison after jurors convicted him of murder Thursday for the fire that killed a police officer.
Marcell Dockery was just 16 when he set the fire 2007 Surf Ave. on April 6, 2014.
"I decided to take a lighter and light the top of the mattress because I was bored," Dockery, of Coney Island, told investigators, as quoted in a news release from prosecutors on the case.
Prosecutors said Dockery lived on the 12th floor but found mattress in the hallway one floor up.
Officers Dennis Guerra and Rosa Rodriguez responded to a 911 call of a fire at approximately 12:30 p.m., but were overcome by smoke and carbon monoxide when they made it to the 13th floor.
Firefighters found both officers unconscious, and Guerra died of his injuries three days later.
Dockery, now 18, faces 25 years to life after a jury convicted him today of second-degree murder, first-degree assault and fourth-degree arson.
Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Danny Chun presided over the trial. Dockery will be sentenced on June 14.
Prosecutors note that Guerra was a second-generation police officer with eight yeas on the force. He is survived by his wife and four children.
Rodriguez had four years on the job when she and Guerra responded to the building blaze in 2014. The officers were assigned to Police Service Area 1 of the Housing Bureau.
Injuries from the fire have kept Rodriguez on limited duty now with the New York City Police Department's Medical Division.
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