Days before murder trial, Mass. man pleads guilty to killing man in shooting
Jerome Almonor, 37, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, two counts of armed assault with an attempt to rob, one count of unlawful possession of a sawed-off shotgun, one count of unlawful possession of ammunition with an FID card, one count of assault with a dangerous weapon and one count of witness intimidation.
Almonor was sentenced to life in prison with the chance for parole after 20 years in prison, Cruz's office said in a statement.
'Since 2012, Jerome Almonor has known that he murdered 36-year-old Lonnie Robinson,' Cruz said in his statement. 'Our office was prepared for trial, a jury was selected and only today did Almonor take responsibility for his actions. I hope that he can reflect on those actions in prison and that the family of his helpless victim finds some peace.'
On Aug. 10, 2012, Brockton police and Massachusetts State Police learned of a shooting on Perkins Street and found a man unresponsive, the statement read. The man, Robinson, was slumped inside a car with a shotgun wound and died after he was taken to the hospital.
Investigators identified Almonor and co-defendant Dominic Tassy, 41, and arrested them.
Tassy was convicted of second-degree murder and witness intimidation and was sentenced to life in prison, Cruz's office said.
As Almonor awaited trial, cell phone data obtained via a warrant was used to initially find and locate him before his arrest, the statement read. Exigent circumstances in this case led to the data on his phone not being suppressed. The Supreme Judicial Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts ruled that this set the precedent for how cell phone data would be obtained during criminal investigations.
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