NEW YORK, NY - Retired police officer, convicted murderer, and former cellmate of child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, Nicholas Tartaglione, 56, was sentenced on Monday for the murder of four people, in addition to other charges. Victims include one man he tortured and strangled to death.
The ex-cop was sentenced to four life terms in prison, to be served consecutively.
Tartaglione's conviction came in 2023, according to the Associated Press. He was a retired police officer in the Hudson River Valley village of Briarcliff Manor prior to his brutal murder of Martin Luna, 41; Urbano Santiago, 35; Miguel Luna, 25; and Hector Gutierrez, 43 in 2016.
US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Damian Williams said in a statement, “Nicholas Tartaglione brutally and senselessly murdered Martin Luna over money, and then ruthlessly executed Urbano Santiago, Miguel Luna, and Hector Gutierrez simply because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time."
BREAKING: Former Westchester police officer Nicholas Tartaglione was sentenced by a federal judge to four consecutive life sentences today in White Plains for his role in the 2016 slayings of four men in Orange County. The latest, coming up at 5 on News 12. pic.twitter.com/FQodH0dTbl
— Blaise Gomez (@BlaiseGomez12) June 10, 2024
Prosecutors told The New York Post that Tartaglione claimed Martin Luna stole $250,000 while conspiring to buy cocaine. Reportedly, the ex-cop and two associates tortured Luna before strangling him to death with a zip tie while the other three men were forced to watch. Santiago, Miguel Luna, and Gutierrez were then shot in the back of the head execution-style.
Nicholas Tartaglione, former police officer, sentenced to 4 consecutive life sentences in Westchester County quadruple murder #USANewsToday #USPolice #AmericanCrime [Video] Former police officer Nicholas Tartaglione will spend the rest of his life in… https://t.co/1h7YgNFhtY
— Taylor Milton (@TMiltonUSA) June 11, 2024
U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara told the AP, "While all murders tear at the fabric of our communities, when the alleged perpetrator of a gangland-style, quadruple homicide is a former police officer, that strikes at the heart of civilized society."
Following his sentencing, U.S. District Judge Kenneth M. Karas. described Tartaglione as a “monster” adding that he has shown zero remorse for his crimes.
Tartaglione briefly shared a cell with convicted pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein prior to his alleged suicide in 2019 prior to his sex trafficking trial. As the Post reports, the ex-cop allegedly "roughed him up," in their cell. Epstein was later found dead in the cell under shadowy circumstances including a failure of the surveillance system with his death controversially ruled a suicide.
Concluding his statement, U.S. Atty. Wiliams said, "Tartaglione has now been held accountable for his reprehensible crimes. Today’s sentence of four consecutive life terms justly reflects the pain and suffering each victim underwent at Tartaglione’s hands. I hope that this outcome brings some measure of closure to the victims’ families and to their community.”
Comments
2024-06-15T09:52-0500 | Comment by: Laurence
He is a disgrace to law enforcement and a disgrace to society. He should be given the death penalty.