Second arrest made in transgender woman's killing

A second person has been arrested in the stabbing death of a transgender woman in Frankford last month, police said Thursday.

Jose Pena, 19, of the 900 block of Pratt Street in the Summerdale section of Northeast Philadelphia, was taken into custody by homicide detectives on Wednesday and charged in the stabbing death of Maya Young.

On Tuesday, police arrested and charged Tiffany Floyd, 24, of the 4300 block of Cloud Street, in Frankford, with murder in Young's killing.

Young, 25, was stabbed about 11:50 p.m. Feb. 20 on the 4900 block of Griscom Street.

Responding officers found her nearby, on the 4800 block of Penn Street, with stab wounds to the neck and chest. She was taken by police to Aria Health-Frankford Campus, where she died at 12:21 a.m. Feb. 21.

Pena and Floyd are charged with murder and conspiracy. Pena is also charged with possession of an instrument of crime. Both have been denied bail.

Police said they did not know whether the suspects knew the victim.

Young, whose birth name was Norman Lindsey, was at least the third transgender person killed in Philadelphia since last year. Kiesha Jenkins, 22, was beaten, robbed, and gunned down in Logan in October, and London Kiki Chanel, 21, who spelled her first name Londyn, according to her Facebook page, was stabbed to death in North Philadelphia in May.

Court records show that Young and Floyd had previously pleaded guilty to prostitution.

At least 21 transgender people were killed in the United States last year, according to the Human Rights Campaign, the highest total on record.

shawj@phillynews.com

215-854-2592 @julieshawphilly