Gunman who left behind phone in fatal Yonkers shooting gets 22 years in prison

One of two gunmen who fatally shot a Yonkers man they wrongly thought was someone else was sentenced Thursday to 22 years in state prison.

Jonathan Planas, 34, learned his fate in the 2020 killing of Alvaro Vigueras Medina after hearing the victim's mother tearfully detail how her life has become "meaningless" without her youngest child.

"He was a wonderful child; loving, respectful, responsible...caring and playful," Delia Medina told Westchester County Judge George Fufidio through a Spanish interpreter. "That same day life stopped for me as well, leaving such great pain in my life."

Fufidio had promised Planas no more than a 23-year prison sentence when he pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter in December.

Just before 1:30 am on Oct. 10, 2020, the 20-year-old Medina was on Lawrence Street when an orange Mercedes Benz pulled up and Planas and another man got out. They fired at least eight shots, hitting Medina as he ran, before getting back into the car and fleeing.

Medina was soon found in the lobby of 19 Lawrence Street with two gunshot wounds to the torso and was taken to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead a short time later.

Planas was identified as a suspect almost immediately. Detectives found his cellphone on the street where video showed he dropped it after getting out of the car. They used video and license plate readers to identify the Mercedes Benz and learned it was registered to Planas’ sister in law. And they tracked it to an Ashburton Avenue parking lot where Planas rented a spot. The car was found two days later under a tarp, with nearly all of its orange-tone acrylic removed.

A search of Planas’ apartment uncovered a sock containing nine .40 caliber bullets that matched the shell casings found at the scene.

Planas was arrested nearly a year later after he was indicted on charges including second-degree murder. Police then said they believed they knew who the second shooter was but no further arrests have been made in the case.

Delia Medina said there are words for survivors when certain people die, like widow, widower and orphan, but no such definition for people who lose children. She said she might have been able to accept the death of her son if he had been sick "but because his life was taken away, I can't."

"It's not fair that these young people by mistake have taken our child away from us. They left our hearts broken and our family destroyed," she said. "I want to tell this young man 'God bless you' and I ask God to give myself and my family the strength to go on."

Assistant District Attorney Marissa Morra-Wynn acknowledged the case had a negotiated disposition and asked simply that Planas be held "accountable for his callous actions and the endless devastation that he caused to the victim's family."

Planas declined to comment on the advice of his lawyer, Anthony Mattesi, who said that a pre-sentence report by probation made clear that "Jonathan not only admitted his guilt but he displayed a substantial amount of remorse for the actions and what happened that day."

The judge gave no specific reason for giving Planas a one-year break on the sentence. He cited the letters he received on Planas' behalf and said he had no reason to doubt the defendant's remorse.

Still he called it a "senseless, violent act" that has destroyed two families.

"You are going to have a significant period of time by yourself to think about what's happened thus far in your life, hopefully for the benefit not only of yourself but for your family and the family of the victim."

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Gunman who fatally shot man in Yonkers NY gets 22 years in prison