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Ezequiel "Zeke" Almodovar of the 1500 block of Hunsecker Road was convicted of two counts of first-degree homicide, one count of reckless burning or exploding, two counts of abuse of a corpse, and one count of tampering with or fabricating on Tuesday, June 13, 2023, the DA previously said and court records confirmed.
The conviction cames at the end of an eight-day jury trial in Lancaster County Court.
Almodovar shot Jonathan Rivera twice and Eugenio Morales-Torres four times while at his home on July 27, 2020, Assistant District Attorney Benjamin Baker explained during the trial.
“The defendant shot each of them once in the back of the head. He then loaded their bodies into the bed of Eugenio’s truck, drove it to a secluded farm lane, and burned the truck and their bodies beyond recognition.” Assistant District Attorney Christopher Miller echoed this during closing arguments.
The night of the killings, around 11:50 p.m., East Lampeter Township Police received a call that the men were missing and neither had been seen or heard from since 7:00 p.m. and their phones going directly to voicemail, as detailed in the release. "The caller also reported the victims went to visit a friend named 'Zeke,' which Almodovar was known to go by," as stated in the release.
A witness also testified that she went by Almodovar's home that night and "observed him standing in the driveway with blood on his shirt and Morales-Torres’ Ford F-150 parked in the driveway," according to the release.
"A burned pick-up truck on Charlestown Road, Manor Township, and discovered charred human remains of two individuals in the bed of the truck," was found by Manor Township police the following day around 6:40 a.m., as stated in the release.
The vehicle belonged to Morales-Torres, according to the police. The Lancaster County Coroner’s Office identified the men and determined the cause of death to be gunshot wounds to the bodies and the manner of their deaths to be homicides.
Almodovar’s neighbors heard multiple gunshots at the time of the shooting, firearm shell casings were found on his driveway, and "a bag of blood (was) found in his garage." according to the release.
Almodovar's attorney argued that the killings were an act of self-defense as "the victims showed up at Almodovar’s house to rob him because they knew he was a drug dealer and would have money/drugs at his home," as stated in the release.
Miller retorted that Almodovar’s testimony during the "trial wasn’t credible because he concealed evidence immediately by burning the bodies and cell phones, destroying home surveillance footage, and trying to create an alibi."
“The defendant is the type of person to immediately mislead you,” Miller said to the jury. “Now three years later he wants to tell you the truth?”
The jury returned its verdict in roughly two hours.
East Lampeter Township Police Officer Scott Eelman filed charges, testified, and attended the entirety of the trial. Pennsylvania State Police, Manor Township Police, and Lancaster County Detectives assisted in the investigation.
The defendant took the opportunity to speak during his sentencing, “I know I’m looked at as a monster, but nobody was there at the top of the driveway that night. I fought for my life.” Judge Ashworth disagreed. “It wouldn’t be appropriate to sentence you to one life sentence when you took two lives,” Ashworth said to the defendant. “Throughout this case, you’ve chosen to blame everyone but yourself.”
Almodovar was sentenced to two life terms without parole plus 46 months to 13 years in prison by President Judge David Ashworth on Nov. 7.
“It takes a special individual to take someone’s life in cold blood and that’s what we have here today,” prosecuting Assistant District Attorney Christopher Miller said to Judge Ashworth. “It takes an even more special person to do it twice in cold blood. He didn’t confine himself to taking two lives. He had to abuse the corpses of Jonathan Rivera and Eugenio Morales-Torres. That’s a really sick and twisted thing to do.”
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