A New York woman faces up to 25 years in prison after being found guilty of assaulting her boyfriend with a stick of dynamite. Keyonna Waddell, 35, was convicted on Friday in Suffolk County of assault and criminal possession of a weapon. The attack occurred two years ago when the explosive detonated in the victim's hand as he slept.
Keyonna Waddell and her unnamed boyfriend argued at his Long Island apartment on March 22, 2024. After he told her to leave, both departed, and the victim returned home alone to sleep, believing no one else was there. Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond Tierney detailed in a press release that the man awoke to a hissing sound and flames in his bedroom, discovering a lit stick of dynamite at the source of the fire. He tried to extinguish the fuse but, unable to do so quickly enough, picked it up to throw out the window; it exploded in his hand instead. Tierney stated that the victim 'felt searing pain and realized that his hand was gone,' then saw Waddell fleeing on foot from his driveway. The man underwent surgery to remove his mangled hand and part of his arm. Investigation revealed Waddell had threatened the victim with dynamite multiple times in the preceding months. She was arrested the day after the incident. Waddell was found guilty on Friday at the Cromarty Criminal Court Complex in Riverhead, New York. She faces a maximum of 25 years in prison and is due for sentencing on May 27.