Jury Convicts Pennsylvania Man in 2014 Monticello Cold Case Murder

MONTICELLO, N.Y. — A Sullivan County jury has found a Pennsylvania man guilty of murder in the 2014 killing of his girlfriend, bringing a long-running cold case homicide investigation to a close.

Sullivan County District Attorney Brian P. Conaty announced Tuesday that Keymarroo Guiden, 53, of East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, was convicted of second-degree murder, a Class A-II felony, in the death of April Parker, 31, of Monticello.

According to prosecutors, Parker was reported missing in May 2014. The Village of Monticello Police Department initially investigated her disappearance before the case was turned over to the New York State Police.

On June 10, 2014, state police discovered skeletal remains in woods behind the Sleepy Hollow complex in Monticello, about 150 yards from where Parker and Guiden had been living. Investigators determined the remains’ head, hands and feet had been severed and disposed of, and the case was reclassified as a homicide investigation.

Subsequent DNA analysis identified the remains as Parker.

Prosecutors said state police interviewed more than 130 people and reviewed thousands of pages of records during the investigation. Authorities ultimately identified Guiden as the sole suspect after eliminating all other possibilities.

Evidence presented at trial showed that on May 9, 2014, Guiden took Parker’s two children to New York City under the pretense of visiting their father. Prosecutors said the children’s father was unaware of the visit and that Guiden later used the trip as an alibi.

While traveling to New York City, Guiden contacted Verizon Wireless and requested that Parker’s phone number be transferred to a Motorola Droid Razr in his possession, according to prosecutors.

The evidence showed that Parker had already been killed before Guiden left Monticello and that her remains had been disposed of in the woods behind the Sleepy Hollow complex, prosecutors said.

Authorities alleged Guiden then used Parker’s phone number and social media accounts to make it appear she was still alive. Prosecutors said he posted photographs using Parker’s Facebook account and communicated with her friends while posing as her, creating distance between himself and the homicide investigation before Parker’s remains were discovered.

The conviction followed a 12-day trial prosecuted by Chief Assistant District Attorney Michael J. Puma with assistance from Executive Assistant District Attorney Jenna Hastings.

Guiden is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 5, 2026. He faces a maximum sentence of 25 years to life in state prison.

Conaty called the killing “the most gruesome and heinous murder committed in Sullivan County in decades.”

“This defendant brutally stole the life of a loving mother, sister, daughter, and valued community member that was attempting to better her life and those of her children,” Conaty said in a statement. “This case culminated in years of committed investigative efforts by law enforcement to bring justice to April Parker and her family.”