Tuesday 26 June 2007

Nelson Serrano sentenced to death


BARTOW – The families of four people who were killed inside a Bartow warehouse in 1997 say they finally got the decision they had been hoping for on Tuesday.

Inside a Polk County courtroom, a judge sentenced Nelson Serrano to death by lethal injection four killing four people in what prosecutors say was a business deal gone wrong.

Last year, a jury found Serrano guilty of four counts of first-degree murder in the shooting deaths of George Gonsalves, Frank Dosso, Diane Patisso and George Patisso, Jr. Gonsalves, Dosso's father and Serrano were business partners at a garment conveyor factory until a dispute over finances led to Serrano's firing as company president.

The four victims were killed execution style, but Serrano has denied any involvement in the crimes, saying he was in Atlanta on business at the time they occurred.

Prosecutors say Serrano concocted an elaborate plan to fly into the area from Atlanta under an assumed name, kill his business partner, and fly back to Atlanta under another assumed name.

On Tuesday, Serrano entered the courtroom with a smile and blew a kiss to his family before learning his fate. His attorneys say he will appeal the sentence, claiming there is a lack of substantial physical evidence connecting him to the slayings.

Members of the victims' families say they are happy with the judge's decision.

"He got what he deserves, and true justice will be in the next lifetime because we can't get what we really want, and that's our children back and our life back, but good prevailed over evil," said Mary Ann Patisso, the mother of one of the victims.

Meanwhile, Serrano's family stands by him, and they maintain his innocence.

"I can tell you that our faith in God and our faith in the truth will continue our strength forward and our efforts forward towards this appeal, which we know we will be granted," said Francisco Serrano, Nelson Serrano's son.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Unfortunately the needle will be less painful than a gunshot to the head. I hope he suffers in hell.