(SUFFOLK COUNTY, N.Y.) – Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney today announced that Gustavo Hernandez, 40, Walter Ramirez Jeronimo, 21, and Wilson Ramirez Jeronimo, 19, all Guatemalan nationals, were each sentenced to 25 years in prison after pleading guilty to Manslaughter in the First Degree, for their participation in the abduction and death of Juan Carlos Diaz Jeronimo, [1] 48.
“These defendants stalked, kidnapped, brutalized and discarded a human being as if his life meant nothing,” said District Attorney Tierney. “These sentences make clear that our office will pursue justice for all victims with the full force of the law.”
According to court documents and the defendants’ admissions during their guilty plea allocutions, on the evening of June 21, 2024, the victim was walking on Broadhollow Road in Farmingdale when he was spotted by the defendants, who were in a Blue Isuzu Rodeo.
Video surveillance showed the defendants exiting the vehicle, attacking the victim, and attempting to drag him toward the Isuzu. Their efforts were thwarted by a passing motorist, allowing the victim to escape to a gas station across the street.
The defendants then followed the victim to the gas station.
Video surveillance showed the Jeronimo brothers covering their faces and then, along with their uncle, beating the victim, knocking him to the ground, choking him, and violently forcing him into the trunk of the Isuzu. The abduction was caught on video surveillance, and occurred at a gas station in broad daylight.
After forcing the victim into the trunk of the SUV, the defendants drove to Belmont Lake State Park, and then back to Farmingdale where surveillance video captured them dumping the victim’s body on a residential street.
The Suffolk County Medical Examiner determined that the victim suffered numerous injuries including but not limited to asphyxia due to neck compression, severe blunt force trauma of the abdomen, and what appeared to be a stab wound to his upper chest.
On December 18, 2025, Walter Ramirez Jeronimo pleaded guilty to Manslaughter in the First Degree, a Class B felony, before Acting Supreme Court Justice Karen M. Wilutis. On February 27, 2026, Walter Ramirez Jeronimo was sentenced to 25 years in prison followed by five years of post-release supervision. He was represented by Jonathan Manley, Esq.
On February 19, 2026, Wilson Ramirez Jeronimo pleaded guilty to Manslaughter in the First Degree, a Class B felony, before Justice Wilutis. On March 19, 2026, Wilson Ramirez Jeronimo was sentenced to 25 years in prison followed by five years of post-release supervision. He was represented by Katherine Fernandez, Esq.
On February 27, 2026, Hernandez pleaded guilty to Manslaughter in the First Degree, a Class B felony, before Justice Wilutis. On March 27, 2026, Hernandez was sentenced to 25 years in prison followed by five years of post-release supervision. He was represented by Christopher Gioe, Esq.
The defendants are all illegally in the United States from Guatemala. Defendant Gustavo Hernandez was previously removed from the United States in 2006 and deported to Guatemala after an assault on a law enforcement officer. Defendant Walter Ramirez Jeronimo was ordered by an immigration judge to be removed on June 15, 2023, and defendant Wilson Ramirez Jeronimo was ordered by an immigration judge to be removed on February 13, 2025.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorneys Sheetal Shetty and Eric S. Aboulafia of the Homicide Bureau, with the assistance of Victim Services Coordinator Aracelis Buchanan. The investigation was conducted by Detectives Peter Barba and Michael Repperger of the Suffolk County Police Department’s Homicide Squad.
[1] There is no familial relationship between the victim, Juan Carlos Diaz Jeronimo, and the defendants.
