WATERBURY, CONNECTICUT: Mabel Martinez Antongiorgi was fatally shot by a man who was furious that another man said "hello" to his girlfriend and he now faces 90 years in prison for the murder.
In April 2022, the convicted gunman Franklin Robinson and a crew of men with weapons were rounded up in Waterbury, Connecticut, as they were looking for the man, according to witnesses, reports People.
Mabel Martinez was sewing at her home when she was fatally shot
Martínez, who is the mother of Puerto Rico’s two-time rifle shooting Olympian Yarimar Mercado Martinez, was sewing in her crafts room at her Waterbury home when a stray bullet struck her in the head.
In connection to Martinez's murder, Robinson was sentenced by Connecticut Judge Brian Preleski on Wednesday, November 1.
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Yarimar Mercado Martinez was competing in Brazil when her mother was fatally shot
At the time, Mercado wrote in Spanish about her mother's death in a social media post.
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"Why you? Why this way? You were just sitting in your little house sewing, as you always did," she wrote.
"There are so many things I still needed to learn from you ... I was so far away without being able to do anything, I couldn’t even say goodbye to you," Mercado added.
Mercado had been participating in a competition in Brazil when her mother was shot to death.
Mabel Martinez was planning to renew her wedding vows
Martinez and her husband John Luis Mercado moved to Waterbury from Puerto Rico following Hurricane Maria.
After three decades of marriage, the couple planned to renew their wedding vows when she was fatally struck.
"It is in tragic irony that she lost her life in the place that she felt so secure. She loved to make arts and crafts. She lost her life while working on one of those projects," said her husband.
What are the charges against Franklin Robinson?
Prosecutors named Robinson the "ringleader" of the murder plan despite not being the one who fired the bullet that struck Martinez.
A conspiracy charge was applied to his indictment, reported the Republican-American.
Emily Dyer, the now-ex girlfriend of Robinson, testified during the trial as a cooperating witness. She then explained the events that led to the fatal shooting which led to Robinson's conviction.
According to the outlet, Robinson was charged with one count each of attempted murder, conspiracy to commit murder, criminal possession of a firearm, first-degree assault and two counts of murder.
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