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Brothers plead guilty to Raleigh brothel shootings
Rony Alvararo Martinez, 24, and Elvin Adrian Martinez, 21, pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree murder and two counts of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill.
Posted — UpdatedRALEIGH, N.C. — Two brothers pleaded guilty Wednesday in connection with a shooting this summer at a home in Raleigh that operated as a brothel.
Rony Alvararo Martinez, 24, and Elvin Adrian Martinez, 21, pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree murder and two counts of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill.
Both men were originally charged with first-degree murder and attempted murder in the June 28 shooting deaths of Marco Antonio Alvarez-Martinez, 19, and Gregorio Lopez-Estrada, 23.
Wake County Assistant District Attorney Susan Spurlin said Elvin Martinez and Rony Martinez charged into the house at 316 Sunnybrook Road, and shot the victims execution style at close range and injured two other people.
"This was all about money," Spurlin said.
A third suspect in the case, Mauricio Castillo, 19, told investigators the crime was Rony Martinez's idea and that they cased the house the week before the crime, she said.
"Both are equally culpable," Spurlin continued, adding that Elvin Martinez accepted responsibility while his brother did not.
Witnesses said the two men went to a cookout later that day and bragged about the details, laughing and showing no remorse, Spurlin said.
Rony Martinez apologized beforeSuperior Court Judge Donald Stephens sentenced both men to 38 to 49 years in prison, the maximum sentence under the charge.
Both men are from Honduras and are in the United States illegally. They will be deported at the end of their prison sentence.
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