Insets, from left: Roger Pitt Sr. and Drew White (Greene County Sheriff’s Office). Background: The area near the Cairo, N.Y., property where Roger Pitt’s remains were discovered (Google Maps).
A 24-year-old upstate New York man is facing the possibility of life in prison after admitting he helped kill his girlfriend’s grandfather, hide the body in a shallow grave, and then took part in what prosecutors describe as an extended effort to make it appear the victim had simply left town.
Drew White entered a guilty plea Wednesday in Greene County Court to second-degree murder in the October 2025 death of 69-year-old Roger Pitt Sr., according to court records. He also pleaded guilty to second-degree conspiracy, tampering with physical evidence, and concealment of a human corpse.
As Law&Crime previously reported, the case first appeared to investigators as a possible voluntary disappearance after relatives claimed Pitt had packed up his belongings and driven away in his 1987 Mercedes-Benz. But detectives with the Greene County Sheriff’s Office later determined that version of events did not line up with the evidence, prompting search warrants at the family’s property in Cairo, where Pitt’s buried remains were ultimately found.
Prosecutors allege White and Roger Pitt’s son, Rodney Pitt, planned the killing after tensions inside the home escalated over household expenses and Roger’s opposition to White living there with Rodney’s underage daughter, the Times Union reported, citing the indictment.
The indictment claims Roger Pitt was killed sometime between Oct. 16 and Oct. 18, 2025, when his throat was cut with a blade described as similar to a box cutter.
Afterward, authorities say White and Rodney Pitt buried the 69-year-old in the backyard, scrubbed blood from the home, destroyed personal identifying documents including his Social Security card and driver’s license, and hid the Mercedes’ license plate inside a wall of the residence.
Roger Pitt’s daughter-in-law, Tania Pitt, is accused of helping get rid of the victim’s Mercedes by taking it to a scrapyard for destruction. Prosecutors have not accused her of taking part in the killing itself.
White admitted his role in the killing during Wednesday’s plea hearing, detailing how Roger Pitt was killed and buried and how the victim’s vehicle was scrapped in an effort to conceal the crime, Mid-Hudson News reported.
The case began after Roger Pitt’s sister repeatedly tried to contact him before reporting him missing on Nov. 18, 2025. Family members told investigators he had left after an argument, but authorities later determined he had been dead for roughly a month. His death was ultimately ruled a homicide caused by sharp-force trauma to the neck.
Rodney Pitt has pleaded not guilty to charges including second-degree murder and remains jailed without bail, according to court records. Tania Pitt, who has also pleaded not guilty, remains free while awaiting trial. Their cases remain in the discovery phase.
According to the Times Union, prosecutors are still deciding whether they will call White to the stand to testify against the other defendants.
White is scheduled to appear for his sentencing hearing Sept. 8. In accordance with his plea agreement, he is expected to receive 19 years to life in a state correctional facility.
