Yesterday, two men were convicted of murder and robbery for a 2007 hold up-gone-wrong in an illegal poker den in the Flatiron District. Four individuals—three gunmen and an inside man— plotted to rob the den, but in the chaos, one dropped a sawed-off shotgun, killing NJ math teacher Frank DeSena.
His widow Kristen Jones said, "There are no winners," and said that she hopes that William Delvalle and "parlor bouncer and inside-man" Scelso Alvarez get the maximum sentence, "I hate wishing such bad things on anyone - but they brought this on themselves." During the trial, she had explained that "her husband played poker to relieve the stress of raising their special-needs son, who is now 19."
Delvalle and Alvarez are scheduled to be sentenced next month, but may consider appealing the convictions. Their associates Jorge Rivera and Steven Perez both pleaded guilty to murder; Rivera is serving 15 years while Perez is awaiting sentencing.
