Levi Aron (ap)
Detectives hauled out more children’s clothes from murder suspect Levi Aron’s apartment yesterday and are investigating whether he is a first-time killer, law-enforcement sources told The Post.
The theory is based on 35-year-old Aron’s age and the manner in which 8-year-old Leiby Kletzky was suffocated and butchered, the sources said.
Cops took bags marked “kids pants” and “blue child’s spoon, pink cup” from the attic apartment and will run the items through the DNA database to see if they match other cases, sources said.
The loser loner stashed the items in the East Second Street home he shared with his father and uncle in Kensington, Brooklyn.
“There were two boxes in a closet, and they appear to have been there for a while,” said a source.
They also carried out bags of shirts and jackets and 12 filing boxes.
As cops continued their sweep, Leiby’s grief-stricken parents, Itta and Nachman, reflected on the tragedy.
“The traditional seven intense days of mourning [shiva] for our beloved Leiby are complete, but the ache in our hearts will remain forever,” they posted on chabad.org.
“We pray that none of you should ever have to live through what we did.”
To honor Leiby’s memory, they asked people to be kind to their neighbors, show gratitude for the life they live and light a candle on Friday nights to forever mark a place for their son at the Shabbat dinner table.
“We are certain that Leiby is now looking down from heaven and blessing us all,” the parents said in their most extensive comments since the tragedy.
Aron’s lawyer Pierre Bazille is backing off plans for an insanity defense, noting his client is still undergoing psychiatric treatment at Bellevue Hospital.
The abandoned strategy was first declared by co-counsel Gerard Marrone, who abruptly quit yesterday.
“The allegations were too horrific, and it’s not something I wanted to be involved in,” he told WABC-TV. “I have three boys. One of my sons is 7.”
In a statement released this morning, Bazille said he “made an instrumental change in his defense team” after Marrone agreed he would withdraw from the case “over a difference in possible defense strategy.
“Mr. Marrone is no longer authorized to comment upon this matter,” the statement read. “Mr. Bazille remains committed to trying this case in the courtroom and not on the steps of the courthouse or in the press. Mr. Bazille calls upon my colleague to remove himself from the spotlight.”
Aron is charged with first-degree murder, kidnapping and other counts.
Leiby’s family yesterday also launched a memorial Web site for the young victim in the hopes of raising $1 million for children and families in need.