WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) - A third man was convicted Friday in a fatal restaurant robbery in South Florida.
Palm Beach County Circuit Judge Joseph Marx sentenced Quinton Sylvestre, 33, to 20 years after he pleaded guilty to lesser charges of second-degree murder and robbery, the Palm Beach Post reported.
The fatal robbery occurred in January 2013 at Josephine’s Italian Restaurant in Boca Raton.
Sylvestre, Adalberto Montalvo and Samuel Walker wore masks as they made their way into the back of Josephine’s as it was closing, police said. The men held several people at gunpoint, including Rafael Rodriguez, 46, and Josephine Tribunella, the restaurant’s owner.
As the workers and patrons all were face-down on the floor, Tribunella told investigators they heard gunshots. Then Rodriguez called out that the men were gone and he was injured. He later died.
Surveillance-camera footage and DNA found on a $20,000 watch taken from Tribunella during the robbery, and later sold at a pawnshop for just $25, led investigators to Sylvestre and the others. Walker’s DNA was on the weapon used to kill Rodriguez, police said.
Montalvo pleaded guilty to lesser charges last month and was sentenced to 30 years in prison.
Walker was convicted by a jury of first-degree murder in September and sentenced to life.
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