BRONX MAN FACING LIFE SENTENCE FOR THE EXECUTION STYLE
MURDER OF A DRUG DEALER DURING A ROBBERY

Bronx District Attorney Robert T. Johnson today announced the murder conviction of a 46-year-old convict in the death of a 42 year-old drug dealer during a robbery at the deceased’s apartment.

A jury found Glenn Wilson guilty of Murder in the 1st degree, Robbery in the 1st degree, and Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the 2nd and 3rd degrees. State Supreme Court Justice Michael Gross set sentencing for Tuesday, June 10, 2008 in Part T-11. Wilson, of 2465 Tratman Avenue, is facing a maximum sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole for the shooting death of Jovanni Vivienes.

Vivienes, whose record included several narcotics convictions, was murdered in his fifth floor apartment at 3363 Sedgwick Avenue on January 14, 2006. Wilson shot Vivienes once in the head from the front slightly below the right eye as Vivienes knelt on the floor in front of the defendant. The jury rejected Wilson’s claim that he went to the apartment to buy drugs and that the shooting was an act of self defense. The People’s theory was that Wilson went to the apartment with the intention of robbing Vivienes. Although there were signs that the apartment had been ransacked, police recovered more than 5 grams of cocaine that had been left on a kitchen counter beneath a cabinet containing a scale that was used to weigh the illegal drugs.

The evidence weighed by the jury included a video tape from the building’s security camera which showed Wilson being greeted in the vestibule by Vivienes who escorted Wilson to his apartment. Approximately a half an hour later, Wilson is seen on the tape leaving the building wearing a hood and the white gloves while dragging two safes through the door.

During the investigation detectives quickly developed information that led them to Wilson the day after the shooting. Detectives located Wilson’s car which was parked near his home and took him into custody when he approached the vehicle and opened the trunk where they recovered the murder weapon and the white gloves that the defendant was seen wearing. Wilson then told investigators where to recover the two safes that were removed from the victim’s apartment. One of the safes contained more than 7 ounces of cocaine.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Debra Guarnieri.