BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — The Erie County District Attorney's Office announced that a jury found three men guilty on Wednesday in connection to the murder of a Town of Tonawanda woman and the murder of two others in Buffalo.
41-year-old Ernest B. Green, Jr. and 41-year-old Daniel Rodriguez were found guilty of one count of second-degree murder and two counts of second-degree attempted murder in the death of 31-year-old Danielle Cretacci.
The district attorney's office said on August 27, 2019, Green and Rodriguez murdered Cretacci and shot her two daughters, who were 8 and 11 at the time, during a home invasion robbery inside her home on Ebling Avenue.
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According to the district attorney's office, one of the daughters pretended to be dead and then watched from a window as the suspects fled after stealing an unknown sum of cash from Cretacci's workers’ compensation settlement. The daughters then went to a neighbor’s home for help and were transported to ECMC where they were hospitalized for their injuries.
Thomas Cino, a family friend and retired Buffalo police officer, told 7 News then that he had a message for the killers: "If you’re happy going through your life looking over your shoulder every minute, have fun with that.”
He said he had never seen a crime as brutal as this impact someone he knew.
“I never had someone in my close circle of friends get murdered,” he said. “I’ve also never walked into a scene where someone has been shot along with two young children.”
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Green and Rodriguez are scheduled to be sentenced on May 3 and both remain held without bail. They face a maximum of 75 years to life in prison.
A jury also found Green and 27-year-old Wayne Robbins guilty of two counts of first-degree murder and four counts of second-degree murder.
The district attorney's office said a month later on September 27, 2019, Green and Robbins murdered 21-year-old Bethany B. Malloy and 26-year-old Shaquiel S. St. John during a robbery inside a two-unit residence on Merrimac Street in Buffalo. They stole an unknown sum of cash.
Green and Robbins are scheduled to be sentenced on May 3 as well. They each face a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.
According to the district attorney's office, 31-year-old Sharee Bailey pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree robbery for her role in the crimes. She remains held without bail pending sentence and faces up to 25 years in prison.
“The families of these three victims have waited a long time for justice. These two separate homicide cases were brutal killings motivated by greed. I am pleased to announce that these defendants have been convicted and face the potential of life in prison."— Acting Erie County District Attorney Michael J. Keane
