North Tonawanda man sentenced for fatally stabbing victim inside North Buffalo apartment building

Submitted by the Erie County District Attorney’s Office

Erie County District Attorney Michael J. Keane announced John A. Rudes, 29, of North Tonawanda, was sentenced this morning before Erie County Court Judge Susan Eagan to 20 years in prison followed by five years of post-release supervision.

On Sunday, Sept. 17, 2023, at approximately 3:46 a.m., the defendant caused the death of the victim by stabbing him multiple times in the neck while inside of an apartment building 1000 block of Kenmore Avenue in the City of Buffalo. The victim, 59-year-old Terry Jackson, was pronounced dead at the scene.

In January 2025, Rudes pleaded guilty to one count of manslaughter in the first degree (class “B” violent felony). The defendant entered a plea to the charge in full satisfaction of the indictment.

Rudes also pleaded guilty to one count of grand larceny in the fourth degree (class “E” felony) in a separate case. Prior to the homicide, the defendant was under investigation for stealing money from his former employer. Today, he received the maximum sentence of one and one-third to four years in prison, which will be served concurrently to his sentence for the manslaughter conviction.

In January 2023, the victim reported to the Depew Police Department that several checks had been stolen from his business checkbook, resulting in a total loss of $3,763. The investigation determined that the defendant, who had been an employee of the victim’s landscaping company, wrote several checks payable to himself. Between Dec. 7, 2022, and Jan. 12, 2023, the defendant deposited stolen checks at various bank locations, which was supported by video evidence. As a condition of the plea, the defendant agreed to pay full restitution to the victim.

Keane commends Det. Sgt. Keith Fitzner and Det. Jen Zhangi of the Buffalo Police Department as well as officer Patrick Canna and Det. James Refermat of the Depew Police Department for their work in these investigations.

The cases were prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney William Fitzgerald of the felony trials bureau, Assistant District Attorney Ryan A. Emmerling of the special investigations and prosecutions bureau with assistance from Assistant District Attorney Rebecca L. Schnirel of the homicide bureau and Assistant District Attorney Jordana C. Grosodonia of the special victims/domestic violence bureau.