Kirkland Shooting Suspect Jason Aquino Pleads Not Guilty to Murder Charges

Jason Aquino, 23, one of the three men implicated in the May 2009 Kirkland House shooting, pled not guilty to charges of murder, armed robbery, and intimidation of a juror and was held without bail Tuesday.

Aquino is now the third man to face murder charges for the death of Cambridge resident Justin Cosby, 21, who was shot in the basement of the Kirkland annex on May 18, 2009, according to the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office.

Jabrai Jordan Copney, 20, and Blayn Jiggetts, 19—who, like Aquino, are from New York City—have also been charged in Cosby’s murder.

Aquino had previously been arraigned on charges of murder before prosecutors dropped the murder charges in Sept. 2009 in part due to the investigation's developments and witness statements.

According to the release, Copney, Jiggetts, and Aquino met with Cosby in Kirkland with the intent of robbing Cosby. Multiple gunshots were fired during the meeting, and Cosby was fatally wounded.

Brittany J. Smith ’09, a former Lowell House resident and Copney's girlfriend at the time, is also facing charges relating to the incident. On March 16, she pled not guilty to accessory and firearms charges.

Smith, 22, allegedly gave her Harvard ID card—which provides electronic swipe access—to the three New York men. She did not receive her diploma last May.

A second Harvard student Chanequa N. Campbell ’09 was linked to the shooting, but she has denied any involvement and has not been charged to date. Campbell was barred from graduation last May.

—Staff writer Eric P. Newcomer can be reached at newcomer@fas.harvard.edu.