Authorities in D.C. said a 16-year-old girl was fatally stabbed by her age-mate after they got into a dispute over “sweet-and-sour sauce.” According to The Washington Post, the fatal incident happened outside a McDonald’s restaurant over the weekend.
The victim, identified as Naima Liggon, was stabbed in the chest and abdomen after she got into a physical altercation with her attacker and another girl. During a Monday hearing in D.C. Superior Court, Detective Brendan Jasper said Liggon and the other girl initially attacked the 16-year-old who stabbed her after they got into an argument over “sweet-and-sour sauce.”
And though the suspect did not fight back at first, she later stabbed Liggon as the victim and the other girl were entering a car, Jasper said. The teen suspect has since been charged with second-degree murder while armed. She entered a not-involved plea, which is the juvenile version of not guilty.
The suspect’s attorney told the court that Liggon and the other girl started the fight and the 16-year-old suspect was defending herself. Prosecutors, however, argued that the fight had ended when the unidentified suspect stabbed Liggon.
“She was the only person who brought a knife to a fistfight,” said prosecutor Priscilla Guerrero. In the wake of the stabbing, Liggon was taken to a hospital where she was pronounced dead.
Per The Washington Post, Liggon is the 13th person under the age of 18 to be killed in Washington this year. The teen accused of fatally stabbing her is also among hundreds of juveniles accused of committing violent crimes.
“At the end of the day, someone is dead over a dispute over sauce,” D.C. Superior Court Judge Sherri Beatty-Arthur said during the hearing. The accused teen is being held in jail.
Liggon’s killing also comes in the wake of city officials working to stop youth violence in Washington.
