Massachusetts man with Fall River ties sentenced to prison for murder of 26-year-old

WOBURN – Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan has announced that Rafael Garcia-Rey, 23, has been sentenced to serve life in prison for the murder of Odogwu Ganobi, 26, in Lowell in 2022. Garcia-Rey was also sentenced to four to five years in state prison on the charge of carrying a firearm without a license and two and a half years in the house of correction on the charge of carrying a loaded firearm to be served on and after the charge of carrying a firearm without a license.  Those sentences will be served concurrently with the murder sentence.

On the evening of November 15, 2022, Garcia-Rey was a passenger in a car being driven by his girlfriend, Anastasia Svay, 21 of Lowell.  Having heard a noise in the car, Svay had stopped in the middle of Maitland Avenue, a dead-end street, near the intersection with Chelmsford Street in Lowell.  Svay’s car was blocking the road as the victim, Odogwu Ganobi, attempted to pass them. Ganobi got out of his car and first confronted Svay.  Garcia-Rey got out of the vehicle and a verbal altercation ensued.  The verbal altercation escalated, and Garcia-Rey shot and killed Ganobi.

After the shooting, Garcia-Rey and Svay fled the area and headed to Hudson, New Hampshire. Garcia-Rey ultimately surrendered himself to the Norton, Massachusetts Police Department on November 24, 2022.

Officials stated at the time that he was wanted that Garcia-Rey had ties to both Fall River and Lowell.

During the trial Svay was expected to testify as a witness for the prosecution, instead she colluded with Garcia-Rey and during recorded jail calls, agreed to take money to hide from authorities and change her phone number to avoid testifying. Despite her not appearing, the trial proceeded and the jury convicted Garcia-Ray. 

“The defendant in this case needlessly escalated a minor traffic situation and then used an illegally possessed gun to shoot Ganobi.  This is another example of the disturbing trend of senseless violence ending in a tragic loss of life,” said District Attorney Ryan. “Equally disturbing was the defendant’s effort to manipulate the outcome of the trial by colluding with a witness to persuade her not to appear to testify.  Our justice system depends upon the integrity of the process.  We will ensure accountability for anyone who engages in such activities.”

After the trial police located Svay and charged her with accepting a bribe to affect her testimony as a witness.  She was arraigned in Lowell District Court on September 12, 2024,  and her  bail was set at $2,500.

This case was investigated by the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office, the Lowell Police Department, Massachusetts State Police Detectives assigned to the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office and the Middlesex Sheriff’s Office.