NYC Man Sentenced 40 Years to Life for Killing Four Homeless

A man convicted of murdering four homeless men as they slept on the streets of Manhattan’s Chinatown was sentenced Thursday to 40 years to life in prison. Randy Santos, 31, received the sentence nearly seven years after he carried out a half-hour rampage with a metal bar, killing four men and severely injuring two others.

The courtroom was notably absent of friends or family members to deliver victim impact statements for Florencio Moran, Nazario Vásquez Villegas, Anthony Manson, and Chuen Kok. Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Alfred Peterson acknowledged the silence, telling Judge Laura A. Ward that while no one was present to speak of the victims' lives, the court understood the value of every life. "That gift was taken away by Randy Santos," Peterson said.

Santos, who was convicted in February of first-degree murder, listened to the proceedings through a Spanish interpreter. He addressed the court in English, apologizing and asking for a sentence that would allow him to have a future after prison. "I just want to say, I'm very sorry for what I did," Santos said. He told the judge his mind, which his lawyers said was deluded by schizophrenia, was now much better with...