A 16-year-old girl was stabbed to death outside a Washington, DC-area McDonald’s in an apparent dispute about sweet and sour sauce over the weekend.
Naima Liggon, of Waldorf, Maryland, was allegedly killed by another 16-year-old girl outside the fast food chain in a popular nightlife section of the city at around 2 a.m., Metropolitan police said.
The deadly knife attack stemmed from an argument over the nugget dipping sauce between the teens and a third girl, Detective Brendan Jasper testified in court Monday, according to the Washington Post.
The verbal dispute turned physical as Liggon and the third girl hit the teenage suspect, who did not initially fight back, outside the restaurant near U Street NW, Jasper told the court, citing security footage.
The 16-year-old instead “lunged” at Liggon and the third teen as they tried to get into a vehicle, the detective testified.
The suspect allegedly stabbed Liggon in the chest and abdomen with a 7-and-a-half-inch pocketknife, he said. The girl was rushed to the hospital by private means but could not be saved.
Liggon died the day before she was to resume classes at Thomas Stone High School following the summer break.
The 16-year-old suspect — whose name has not been released due to her age — was arrested Sunday and will also miss classes as she was ordered held without bail until her next court date, the Washington Post reported.
The girl, who is also from Waldorf, was charged with second-degree murder while armed and pleaded not involved — the juvenile version of not guilty — during the hearing Monday.
“At the end of the day, someone is dead over a dispute over sauce,” DC Superior Court Judge Sherri Beatty-Arthur said as she announced that the child will remain in custody until her next hearing on Friday.
She was found to be in possession of a knife when police handcuffed her, Metropolitan police said.
“She was the only person who brought a knife to a fistfight,” prosecutor Priscilla Guerrero said, according to the newspaper.
The teen’s defense attorney claimed she acted in self-defense.
DC officials have created a curfew for minors aged 16 and younger in several parts of DC, including the U Street area, that begins on Friday.
The curfew, which begins at 11 p.m. on weeknights and midnight on weekends, is part of an effort to curtail juvenile violence in the district.
Liggon was the 13th young person under 18 years old killed in Washington this year — often at the hands of other minors, according to the Washington Post.
A neighbor whose son was friends with Liggon described the teenager as “a beautiful person” in an interview with Fox5 Washington DC.
“She was the first friend [my son] met when he arrived here,” Rickey Graves told the local station.
“It’s just – it was a shock for us because she’s a beautiful person. She had a great personality, always laughing – a lot of laughter. Her mom – very friendly, beautiful people. So, I’m just shocked that this kind of thing would happen to her.”
