An Albany hilltowns woman who fatally injured her 5-year-old cousin and hid him in a snowbank while he was still alive has been sentenced to 18 years to life in prison.
Tiffany VanAlstyne was sentenced Thursday morning in Albany County Court.
The 20-year-old admitted beating and choking Kenneth White while caring for him in December 2014. She pleaded guilty in November to depraved indifference murder of a child.
VanAlstyne initially told authorities White had been kidnapped by masked intruders, who had burst through the door of the family's trailer at 994 Thacher Park Road in East Berne, prompting issuance of a statewide Amber Alert. She later admitted she covered his body with snow after tossing it into a culvert near their home, then called 911 with the abduction story.
White was found dead later that night.
© 2016 AP
