Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez yesterday announced that a 44-year-old man has been convicted of murder and other charges for the shooting death of the owner of L&B Spumoni Gardens in Gravesend.
Andres (“Andy”) Fernandez, 44, of Melville, Long Island was convicted of second-degree murder and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon following a jury trial before Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Danny Chun of ambushing and gunning down Louis Barbati, 61, who owned the eatery, famous its pizza, outside his Dyker Heights home in 2016.
“With today’s verdict this defendant has been brought to justice for the murder of a beloved husband, father and fixture of the Gravesend community. I commend the jury for its hard work convicting this defendant, and for bringing some solace to the family, friends and many Brooklynites affected by this senseless tragedy,” said Gonzalez.
The murder unfolded at about 6:40 p.m. on June 30, 2016, after Barbati left his restaurant, L&B Spumoni Gardens, at 2725 86th Street in Gravesend carrying a plastic bag containing $15,483 in cash.
About an hour earlier, according to the evidence, the Fernandez, wearing a dark hooded sweatshirt and sunglasses, was in the vicinity of the victim’s home on 12th Avenue in Dyker Heights and waited, the evidence shows. At about 7 p.m., the victim arrived at his home, parked his car on the side of the house and got out holding the bag of cash.
The defendant then walked across the street and shot the victim several times, killing him. He subsequently ran, without taking the money, entered a late-model Acura and fled. In addition to being at the murder scene, the defendant was present at L&B Spumoni Gardens earlier that day, according to the evidence.
Surveillance images of the defendant were distributed by the New York City Police Department and he was identified by several witnesses. He was arrested by federal authorities on November 3, 2016.
The District Attorney thanked the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Office of the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York for their assistance in the investigation.
Fernandez faces up to 25 years to life in prison when he is sentenced on January 8, 2020.
