By Carolyn Thompson
As state child welfare investigators Wednesday began looking into Monday night’s slaying of a group home counselor, the mother of one of the suspects said she was dumbfounded by the accusations.
“It doesn’t make sense to me, because he was supposed to be coming home. He had been working really hard for it,” said April Thousand, the mother of 17-year-old Robert Thousand.
Thousand and Anthony Allen, 18, are accused of throwing a blanket over the head of 24-year-old Renee Greco on Monday night and beating her to death with objects from the basement before stealing money and a van. They were arrested early Tuesday.
“This was a tragic incident and we want to make sure we come up with a resolution,” said Ed Borges, spokesman for the state Office of Children and Family Services. The agency sent its chief investigator and others to Lockport to examine the backgrounds of the accused teens and find out how they came to be living at the state-licensed home.
Monroe County spokesman Noah Lebowitz said Allen had been charged with petit larceny in the county in 2005 and had been placed at the home by a Family Court judge in January.
Thousand was charged in 2005 with second-degree sexual abuse and had been at the home since August, Lebowitz said. He said details of the charges were unavailable.
April Thousand, reached at home in Rochester, said the charge was filed when her son was in his father’s custody following the couple’s divorce and she did not know the specifics. But she said her son was on track to be released into her custody this summer.
She said she had spoken to him by phone following his arrest.
“He told me he was partially involved but not completely. ... He admitted to taking the van but nothing to do with Miss G,” she said.
Police said Allen stole $160 from the home’s office over the weekend and decided to run away to avoid being caught.
“I asked Bobby to stay away from (Allen),” April Thousand said. “He was really pushy when it came to Robert, he kept at him. There was too much influence, trying to coerce him to do a lot of things, constantly trying to fight other kids.”
Detective Capt. Richard Podgers said no one had contacted police on Allen’s behalf Wednesday. Allen told officers his father is dead and he doesn’t get along with his mother.
Allen and Thousand are being held without bail after pleading not guilty Tuesday to murder, robbery and burglary.
