Man Gets At Least 40 Years For Killing Detroit Firefighter
DETROIT (WWJ/AP) - A 33-year-old man convicted of fatally bludgeoning a sleeping Detroit firefighter with a gym weight has been sentenced to at least 40 years in prison.
Timmy Lynn Soto of Detroit was sentenced Wednesday to 38-80 years on second-degree murder charge plus two years to run consecutively on a weapons charge. He pleaded guilty to the charges Dec. 1.
Soto was one of three people charged in the slaying of 59-year-old David Madrigal, whose body was found Dec. 21, 2015, in his ransacked home by his son. He was a 26-year fire department veteran who planned to retire this year.
Co-defendant Christian Rasnick is due to be sentenced Thursday on a second-degree murder charge. The third defendant, Nicole O'Neill, is scheduled to go on trial March 8 on armed robbery, arson and larceny charges.
According to the testimony, Madrigal invited Soto over to drink on December 19. Soto showed up at the west side home on Vaughn Street with O'Neill and Rasnick and was welcomed inside. As the night went on, Soto apparently became upset because Madrigal was allegedly hitting on O'Neill during the night.
"Soto told police that seeing Madrigal touch O'Neill caused him to have 'flashbacks' to witnessing sexual abuse in the past, and it 'made me snap.'" according to a court report.
Soto told police he left the home during the night to get some drugs and when he returned, Madrigal was sleeping in a chair. According to testimony, Soto then picked up a weight plate and struck Madrigal twice in the head. The trio ransacked the house, stealing a safe and Madrigal's SUV, and fled the scene. According to testimony, the trio split the safe's bounty, $1,500 and two guns, before dumping Madrigal's SUV in southwest Detroit and setting it on fire.
Two days later, Madrigal's body was found by his son after the 26-year fire department veteran failed to return telephone calls. The trauma was so severe, investigators initially thought he had been shot to death.
The report says Rasnick and O'Neill knew they were going to Madrigal's house with the intention of robbery, but they didn't plan for him to end up dead. Things took a fatal turn only after Soto apparently realized he couldn't get away with the caper because Madrigal knew him too well, according to the report.
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