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Anthony Gutierrez-Meza, age 25, of Valley Stream, was sentenced to 22 years in prison in Suffolk County Court on Tuesday, July 11.
It followed his May 2023 guilty plea to manslaughter for the killing of Estiven Abrego-Gomez at Greenlawn Park in Greenlawn in August 2016.
According to the Suffolk County DA’s office, Gutierrez-Meza is a member of the Normandy clique of Mara Salvatrucha-13 (MS-13) and got permission from a higher-ranking gang member to kill Abrego-Gomez.
On Aug. 19, 2016, he lured Gomez to Greenlawn Park by messaging him on Facebook asking to meet up and smoke marijuana.
As soon as Abrego-Gomez walked into the park he was ambushed by Gutierrez-Meza and several others who knocked him to the ground and took turns hitting him with a baseball bat and stabbing him.
The group also chopped at the man with a machete, nearly severing both of his hands, prosecutors said. They then fled, leaving his body at the park.
“There is no reasonable explanation that could ever justify this defendant’s conduct,” Suffolk County DA Raymond Tierney said.
“However, the defendant’s actions are made even more senseless given that he took the life of the victim for no other reason than to advance his position in the MS-13 gang.”
On May 30, Gutierrez Meza pleaded guilty to one count of manslaughter shortly before his trial was scheduled to begin.
In addition to his prison sentence, he was ordered to complete five years of post-release supervision.
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