Niagara Falls Man Found Guilty in 2022 Stabbing Death

A Niagara County Court jury needed just about an hour of deliberation Tuesday to convict Al Rocky Villane of murder following more than two hours of closing arguments.

The 12-member panel, made up of six men and six women, also determined Villane, 32, of Niagara Falls, was guilty of fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon in connection with the fatal stabbing of Hollis Stewart.

With the conviction, Villane faces a potential sentence of 25 years to life in prison. He remains in custody without bail until sentencing, which is expected later this year.

Authorities said Stewart, 47, also of Niagara Falls, died in November 2022 at Erie County Medical Center after spending nearly six weeks hospitalized.

He had suffered a stab wound to the chest during a confrontation with Villane on September 19th, 2022, at an apartment complex on the 700 block of 20th Street.

When Falls Police officers arrived at the apartment building around 4:50pm on the day of the incident, they found Stewart with a 4½-inch stab wound to the chest.

He was rushed into emergency surgery at ECMC. Crime Scene Unit detectives recovered the knife at the scene when Villane was taken into custody.

During the three-day trial, defense attorney Robert Ross Fogg maintained that Villane “never intended” to kill Stewart.

“Al Rocky Villane is innocent,” Fogg told jurors. “He’s not guilty. Where are the elements of intention here? Al didn’t intend to kill anyone. Al didn’t intend to hurt anyone.”

Fogg said Villane carried a hunting knife only to scare away Stewart, who had been trying to reconcile with an estranged girlfriend. He argued the conduct was “reckless, but not intentional.”

Prosecutors, however, called the killing “a senseless act of violence because [Villane] was not going to give up [a romantic interest] to Hollis Stewart or anyone else.”

Assistant District Attorney Maria Stoelting argued Villane acted deliberately. When a co-worker asked him to leave her apartment, “he formed the intent to use [a hunting knife] on Hollis Stewart.”

Testimony during the trial included witnesses who said Villane displayed the knife before using it, declaring, “Mother Nature gave me a gift.” Another tenant testified hearing him threaten, “I’ll stab you.”

Stoelting told jurors, “If Al had just done what he was told to do, ‘Take your stuff and go,’ we’re not here. The defendant could have walked away at any time, but he didn’t stop until he did what he set out to do.”

Niagara Falls Man Found Guilty in 2022 Stabbing Death