Long Island killer admits to luring, gunning down teen in vicious robbery gone wrong: DA

A cold-blooded fugitive admitted Tuesday to tricking and killing a Long Island teenager in a botched robbery before leaping out of a moving car and fleeing to Florida, according to prosecutors. Erick Garcia, 22, confessed he lured 19-year-old Carlos Guillen under the guise of a harmless meetup in October 2022, then jumped into the passenger seat of the teen’s car and pulled a gun on him in an attempt to rob him, Suffolk County prosecutors said.The young victim floored the gas pedal in a desperate bid to escape, but Garcia was still in the passenger seat and opened fire at close range, hitting Guillen, according to the district attorney’s office.Garcia bailed out of the speeding car as it was moving.He took off to Florida the next day to evade justice, prosecutors said.“This was a vicious plan with an equally vicious result,” said Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney.“The defendant’s plan to lure and rob the victim, Carlos Guillen, led to foreseeable violence — we will not tolerate violent crime like this in Suffolk County,” Tierney said.After being shot, Guillen, who was from Bay Shore, attempted to dial 911 but was unable to speak and crashed his vehicle, prosecutors said.He was transported to South Shore University Hospital, where he died of a gunshot wound, prosecutors said.Prosecutors said that cellphone data placed Garcia’s phone at the scene of the crime at the time of the shooting, and also confirmed that he went to Florida the next day.Garcia, who is from Central Islip, was arrested in November 2022 for having a loaded gun in his waistband.

He pleaded guilty to manslaughter for Guillen’s slaying.He’s due back in court on August 6, when he is expected to be sentenced to 25 years in prison followed by five years of post-release supervision, prosecutors said....