Arrest made in fatal stabbing of CVS employee Edeedson Cine, 23, behind counter of Lindenhurst store

A Lindenhurst man was arrested Friday in the fatal stabbing of a local CVS employee on Christmas Day.

Suffolk police arrested John Pilaccio, 43, charging him with the killing of Edeedson Cine, 23, of West Babylon, at the Lindenhurst pharmacy on Thursday, according to a police news release.

The department shared the news of Pilaccio's arrest hours after Suffolk County Police Commissioner Kevin Catalina told reporters that CVS hampered their initial investigation by withholding security camera footage.

Cine was stabbed in the chest at about 6:50 p.m. Thursday while working behind the counter of the East Montauk Highway location, according to Catalina.

Cine was brought to Good Samaritan Hospital Medical Center in West Islip, where he was declared dead, police said in a news release. Pilaccio allegedly fled the scene on foot.

Pilaccio was charged with second-degree murder, according to the release. He is expected to be held overnight at Suffolk's Third Precinct in Bay Shore and arraigned at First District Court in Central Islip on Saturday.

Speaking earlier Friday afternoon from a Suffolk County public works yard — where county officials briefed reporters on snowstorm preparation — Catalina had said police had a person of interest in the homicide, but did not provide identification at that time. He did not say what precipitated the fatal confrontation.

"Based on the person of interest and his background, I can only assume he was in the store for nefarious reasons. And it’s possible that the confrontation was a result of that," Catalina said.

At the time of Friday's news conference, Catalina said CVS had not yet provided Suffolk police access to its security footage.

"Quite frankly, that has hampered our ability to make an arrest in this situation. I’m shocked and appalled by it," he said. "If the CEO of CVS had to fly out to Long Island to not only console the family, but make sure that the video was released in a timely fashion, then he should have."

CVS spokeswoman Amy Thibault later told Newsday via email that the company provided Suffolk police with the video at about 12:30 p.m. Friday. Suffolk police confirmed receipt in an email to Newsday.

"We cooperate fully with police investigations," Thibault wrote, adding: "It took quite a bit of time to pull and package in the specific manner they asked for."

Catalina said police used witness accounts and video footage from outside the store to identify the person of interest. A police spokesperson told Newsday in an email that multiple people called 911, including a CVS employee.

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Thibault said by email that Cine was a store associate whose duties depended on what's needed each shift.

"We’re devastated over the tragic stabbing that occurred inside our East Montauk Highway store on Christmas night. Edeedson Cine was a valued member of the store team, known for his strong work ethic," she said. "During his 10 months with CVS, he was a hard-working and dedicated employee and his loss will be felt by all of us."

Counseling and support services will be offered to all store employees "to help them cope with this senseless tragedy," Thibault added.

Newsday's Matthew Chayes and Nicholas Grasso contributed to this story.

By Sam Kmack

sam.kmack@newsday.com

Sam Kmack covers the Town of Islip for Newsday. He is a graduate of the University of Southern California and previously worked as a city watchdog reporter in the Phoenix metro area, as well as an investigative journalist at the Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting.