Guatemalan man sentenced to prison in Fall River Superior Court after First-Degree Murder conviction

A Guatemalan man was sentenced this morning in Fall River Superior Court after being convicted of First-Degree Murder.

According to the Bristol County District Attorney’s Office, On November 16, 1991, Attleboro Police responded to the intersection of Bank and Dean Streets where they located Ismael Jesus Recinos Garcia, 28 years old, of 60/62 Dean Street. He was suffering from a single stab wound to the chest.  The victim was pronounced deceased a short time later.  Police located the murder weapon, which was determined to be a butcher’s knife, the following morning three houses south of the crime scene. The Defendant, Mario Garcia, who was 19 years old at the time, was identified by several witnesses as the suspect.  Police obtained an arrest warrant charging the defendant with Murder.   However, Garcia fled the Commonwealth and eventually the country shortly after the murder. He was located in December 2022, after a lengthy investigation by the Massachusetts State Police, on a shrimp farm in Guatemala. Garcia was arrested and extradited back to the United States for trial on the murder charge. 

“I like to commend the prosecution team for their efforts in the investigation and prosecution of this case.  I especially would like to acknowledge the investigative effort of Massachusetts State Trooper Curt Cinelli who was instrumental in the apprehension of the defendant in Guatemala.  Without his efforts a conviction would not be possible”, District Attorney Tom Quinn said.

According to court records, on Friday morning, Garcia was sentenced to life with the possibility of parole in 15 years with credit of 1088 days served.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorneys Shawn Guilderson and Patrick Driscoll.