Man Sentenced To 25 Years For Farmingville Armed Robbery

One of five men convicted of robbing a Farmingville home at gunpoint in 2016 was sentenced to 25 years in prison, Suffolk County District Attorney Tim Sini said today.

Luis Garcia, 36, of Commack, was also sentenced to five years post-release supervision by Judge Timothy Mazzei.

“Thanks to the hard work of ADAs Ferron Lien and Kimberly Shalvey, another dangerous individual has been taken off the streets of Suffolk County,” Sini said.

On Aug. 4, Garcia and four other men mistook the house at 17 Chestnut Ave. in Farmingville for the home of a drug dealer and forcibly entered.

A woman who was present in the home entered the kitchen after hearing a noise and was confronted by two of the men, who proceeded to drag her down the hallway of the home by her hair to the master bedroom. The men then demanded drugs and money from the victim and threatened to kill her family and their two dogs, prosecutors said.

The men stole jewelry, purses and electronics, prosectors said.

The police located and arrested Garcia within an hour of the break-in.

“This alleged gang member is being held accountable for his role in a violent armed robbery that victimized an entire family," Sini said. "Today, justice has been served. Let this sentence serve as a message to other gang members: we’re coming for you. If you commit violent acts in our communities, you are going to prison for a very, very long time.”

The co-defendants are Jason Montello, 40, of Bay Shore; Paul Torres, 45, of Middle Island; Anthony Capuano, 41, of Selden; and Ray Pena, 24, of Port Jefferson Station.

Montello and Torres were convicted by a jury on Nov. 17, 2017, of two counts of burglary in the first degree; three counts of burglary in the second degree; two counts of robbery in the first degree; and two counts of robbery in the second degree.

Montello was sentenced on April 16 , to 25 years to life in prison. Torres was sentenced on April 10, to 24 years to life in prison.

Capuano pleaded guilty on July 14, 2017, to 35 criminal charges in connection with the home invasion, a second unrelated home invasion, and an unrelated robbery. He was sentenced on January 24, to 14 years in prison.

Pena pleaded guilty on May 8, to two counts of burglary in the first degree; three counts of burglary in the second degree; two counts of robbery in the first degree; two counts of robbery in the second degree; and criminal possession of stolen property in the fifth degree. He will be sentenced at a later date.

Photo: Suffolk County District Attorney