District Man Sentenced To 55 ½ Years In Prison

For First-Degree Murder While Armed
And Other Charges in Christmas 2009 Attack
-Gunshots Killed One Man, Wounded Two Others-

WASHINGTON – Marlo Garcia, also known as “Lupita,” 24, was sentenced today to a prison term of 55 ½ years following his conviction for first-degree murder while armed and other charges in a shooting on Christmas Day 2009 that killed one man and wounded two others, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

Garcia, of Washington, D.C., was found guilty by a jury in March 2013, following a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. In addition to the murder charge, the jury found him guilty of three counts of assault with intent to kill while armed and related weapons offenses. The Honorable Ronna L. Beck sentenced him this afternoon.

According to the government’s evidence, on Dec. 25, 2009, Garcia was invited by his friend, Miguel Romero, to attend a Christmas party at about 4 a.m. at a rooming house in the 5400 block of Fourth Street NW. Garcia brought a .25-caliber handgun to the location, and while there, he went out in an alley to shoot it.  When told to stop, he became agitated.

Garcia then went inside the residence and began dancing and groping his friend’s girlfriend. Mr. Romero’s cousin approached Garcia to calm him, and Garcia shot him in the head. He then shot the girlfriend in the head and shot Mr. Romero in the back, neck and head. Garcia then fired yet another shot but missed a fourth person at the apartment. Mr. Romero, 21, died immediately. The other two shooting victims still have bullets lodged in their brains.

After shooting the victims, Garcia fled the apartment. He was arrested two days later.

In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen praised the work of the detectives, officers, and mobile crime scene officers from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) who investigated the case. He also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorney Kate Rakoczy, Paralegal Specialist Kelly Blakeney, and Melissa Milam, Iris Vega, Marcia Rinker, Laverne Forrest, Michael Hailey, Katina Adams and David Foster, all of the Victim Witness Assistance Unit. Finally, he commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Cynthia G. Wright, who prosecuted the case.