An attractive PhD student faces execution if convicted of murdering her friend’s six-week-old son while she was babysitting him, prosecutors say.
Nicole Virzi, 29, has been charged with the murder of six-and-a-half-week-old Leon Katz while she was babysitting him in their Pittsburgh home in June.
Police allege she is responsible for causing a fractured skull and multiple hemorrhages on the brain that were detected by a CT scan. She is also accused of injuring Leon’s twin brother Ari, who survived.
Court documents obtained by WPIX show that the Allegheny County Prosecutor’s Office is seeking the death penalty against Virzi.
The case file, which outlines the reasons for seeking the death penalty, states: ‘The defendant committed the murder while in the process of committing a crime. The crime was committed by means of torture.’
Nicole Virzi (pictured), 29, is accused of killing six-and-a-half-week-old Leon Katz and injuring his twin brother
Police allege she is responsible for causing Leon (pictured) to suffer a fractured skull and several bleeds on the brain that were detected by a CT scan
Leon’s alleged killer was a “trusted friend” of the babies’ parents, Ethan Katz and Savannah Roberts. (Pictured: Baby Leon shortly after his birth in May 2024)
“The defendant has a significant history of convictions for crimes involving the use or threat of violence against the person. The victim was a child under the age of 12.”
Further details of these previous convictions were not shared. A public check of Virzi only yielded details of the charges she faces for Leon’s murder.
Virzi was a “trusted friend” of the babies’ parents, Ethan Katz and Savannah Roberts, who was babysitting the twins while she was away on college vacation.
Her father, Peter J Virzi, is a top cardiologist affiliated with Mt. Sinai Doctors in Manhattan and board certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine.
The suspected killer continued to watch little Leon while his parents were at UPMC Children’s Hospital in Pittsburgh with his twin brother, Ari. Police said Virzi discovered a wound in his groin area.
She told police she went to the kitchen to give the baby a bottle when she suddenly heard screaming.
When she came back, she said the baby had fallen out of his bouncer. She then called 911.
“The injuries sustained by both (twins) are consistent with child abuse as these injuries are not natural and not accidental,” a doctor told investigators, according to court documents.
Virzi was a “trusted friend” of the babies’ parents, Ethan Katz and Savannah Roberts (pictured), who babysat the twins while she was away on a study break
Prosecutors in Pennsylvania are seeking the death penalty against Virzi, who denies any wrongdoing
Photos taken just days before the tragedy show the bright-eyed twins standing side by side in rompers with their names embroidered on them
The suspect’s father has been identified as Peter J Virzi, a top cardiologist at Mt. Sinai Doctors in Manhattan
Virzi denies any wrongdoing and her lawyer maintains her innocence. She is charged with murder, child abuse and aggravated assault.
Police have not yet released a motive for this horrific crime.
In a video posted days before the alleged murder of her friend’s baby, the PhD candidate is seen discussing a paper she wrote on depression in women.
In the video, shared June 13 by the scientific journal Heart and Mind, Virzi wears a white jacket and sounds eloquent as she explores how somatic symptoms of depression in women may lead to a higher risk of heart disease.
A GoFundMe page for the bereaved couple says Leon “tragically passed away under horrific circumstances” and that a “trusted friend of the family” has been arrested.
“Leon will always be remembered as a happy, smiling, goofy baby boy. His untimely and tragic death has had a profound impact on the Pittsburgh community,” the donation page reads.
Photos taken just days before the tragedy show the twins standing side by side, eyes bright, wearing rompers with their names embroidered on them.