NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — The former St. John's University lacrosse captain who was convicted of stabbing his teammate in the stomach after a dispute over loud music was sentenced on Friday to six years in prison, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced.
Matthew Stockfeder, 24, of Melville, Long Island, was found guilty in late March of first-degree and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon following a three-week-long jury trial.
On the night of Oct. 22, 2019, Justin Corpolongo, the victim, attempted to sleep in the house he shared with Stockfeder and other members of the team, according to court testimony.
Court records said the two men argued back and forth over a group text message. After being called a "loser" by the defendant, Corpolongo, then 23-years-old, left the house and went to the new party site to confront Stockfeder.
When they came face-to-face, Stockfeder raised his arms as if he might strike the victim.
That's when Corpolongo countered by punching the defendant, who fell to the ground, according to records. Other students at the party grabbed the victim, and when the defendant stood up, Stockfeder pulled out a knife and stabbed the victim twice in the abdomen.
"One of his abs was cut in half — and that ab probably saved his life," said the victim's father, Dominick, to The New York Daily News days after the stabbing. "His small intensities were sticking out at the time of the incident, and one section of the small intestine was pierced through."
Corpolongo was rushed to an area hospital where he underwent life-saving emergency surgery to repair a laceration to his small intestine.
Katz praised Stockfeder's sentence in a statement.
"An argument about a late-night party escalated to blows and then bloodshed when the defendant committed a senseless act of violence. A jury of his peers found the defendant guilty," she said. "The Court today has sentenced him to prison for his criminal behavior."
