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Alejandro Vargas-Diaz, age 41, pleaded guilty to murder and related charges in Suffolk County Court on Monday, July 24, for fatally shooting Albert Luis Rodriguez-Lopez in July 2018.
According to the Suffolk County DA’s office, the two men got into an argument inside a pool hall in Port Jefferson on July 22, 2018. During the altercation, Rodriguez-Lopez punched Vargas-Diaz in the face, knocking him to the ground.
Vargas-Diaz admitted that he later ambushed the victim, shooting him in the back, neck, and shoulder. Rodriguez-Lopez, of Selden, died at the scene.
Following the murder, Vargas-Diaz fled the state. He was arrested in Flagler County, Florida in June 2021 after someone gave a tip to Crime Stoppers.
Suffolk County Police detectives found the murder weapon, a 9mm pistol, a month after the killing hidden in a tree at the Setauket Port Jefferson Greenway Trail.
“For five years, the relatives and loved ones of Mr. Rodriguez-Lopez have waited for justice for this senseless murder," Suffolk County DA Raymond Tierney said.
“While the defendant may have prolonged his freedom by hiding out in another state, it was only a matter of time before the law caught up with him and now, he is being held to account for his actions.”
In court Monday, Vargas-Diaz pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and criminal possession of a weapon.
He is expected to get 23 years to life in prison when he is sentenced on Wednesday, Sept. 13.
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