BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Convicted killer Edward Kindt is accused of violating his parole by escaping the supervised transitional housing he was placed in.
Kindt served more than 23 years in prison for the rape and murder of Penny Brown in Salamanca in 1999.
He was denied parole several times, but in 2023 his request was granted by the New York State Board of Parole. He became a free man at the age of 39, the same age Brown was when she was killed.
“That was a terrible crime that he committed and how can he be released,” Sandy Magiera, the Mayor of Salamanca, told 7 News in March 2023.
State Senator George Borrello and Penny Brown's daughter, Kaitlyn Brown, both say Kindt never should have been released.
"I was 13-years-old. My mother went missing on Mother's Day of 1999. She went out for a jog and did not come home," an emotional Kaitlyn Brown explained.
It was the last Mother's Day Kaitlyn would ever spend with her mom.
"She was raped and strangled with a dog leash and left in a ditch not far from my house," explained Kaitlyn.
"He was not a model prisoner. He was caught several times with contraband, weapons, exposing himself to females in the prison," explained Senator Borrello.
Since his release, Borello said Kindt has violated the conditions of his parole twice. The most recent time was just last week when he escaped supervised transitional housing in Dutchess County.
"Six days ago the parole commission lost track of Edward Kindt. They did not inform local law enforcement," said Borello.
Police took Kindt back into custody around 2 a.m. Wednesday in Salamanca. The Seneca Nation formally banned Kindt from all Seneca territories for a year.
"He never should have been released. We have been so utterly, disgustingly failed by the New York State system," said Kaitlyn. "I think people would be shocked to know what this has been like if they were suddenly put in this position and it was their sister, their mother, their daughter, their child. You do not want to be on that end of it."
Senator Borrello sent a letter to Governor Hochul calling on her to clean house at the parole board and blamed bail reform for creating what he calls a "public safety crisis" in New York State.
I reached out to Hochul's office and was referred to The Department Of Corrections. A DOCCS spokesperson said officials used data from Kindt's GPS device to determine his last known location. He is now in the Dutchess County jail awaiting the outcome of the parole violation process.
On Wednesday night, Cattaraugus County leaders called for NYS Board of Parole members to resign as this case unfolds.
“Kathy Hochul get these dirtbags off the parole board. They should resign in shame,” said Chairman Andrew Burr of the Cattaraugus County Legislature.
A GoFundMe has been set up to provide Kaitlyn, and her sister Bradleigh, financial support for mental health resources and counseling. You can find the GoFundMe here.
