A Jamaica man was sentenced Monday to 22 years in prison after pleading guilty to manslaughter in the January 2013 shooting death of a man in a neighborhood bar, according to Queens District Attorney Richard Brown.
Reyes Manzueta, 54, pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter on July 20.
According to court documents, on Dec. 23, 2012, Manzueta visited the El Nuevo Café Latino on Jamaica Avenue when he encountered the victim, Jony Gonzalez, sitting next to a woman at the bar. Manzueta hit the woman in the back of her head; she reacted by throwing a bottle at him. Manzueta then went after the woman, but Gonzalez intervened to protect her and the two men scuffled before others in the bar separated them. Manzueta then left the bar.
According to court records, Brown said, on Jan. 5, 2013, Manzueta returned to the bar specifically looking for Gonzalez. He approached him, pulled out a 9mm handgun and shot Gonzalez several times—hitting him in the chest, back, abdomen, leg, and arm. Gonzalez died at the scene. A second man was also hit by gunfire, but survived his injuries.
In addition to the 22-year prison term, Manzueta was also sentenced to five years’ post-release supervision.
