A Florida career criminal was freed from prison early before allegedly killing an elderly man, and a local police chief has expressed frustration regarding the justice system.
“Justin Giambanco, 31, served just 18 months of a 53-month sentence and was back committing burglaries in the Palm Bay area before he brutally killed a 69-year-old man Thursday, Police Chief Mario Augello said,” the New York Post reported Sunday.
The suspect reportedly has a long criminal history that includes 22 felonies, according to Fox 35.
When speaking of the case involving Giambanco, whose inmate details can be found on the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO) Bookings site, Augello detailed what officers found when they arrived at the elderly resident’s home on Thursday.
He noted the officers found a deceased man and, “based on evidence collected at the scene by our criminal investigations division, Giambanco was immediately identified as a suspect in this homicide investigation.”
He continued:
This 31-year-old suspect is pure evil. He is a violent repeat offender that, while out on bond for a previous arrest, preyed on the citizens of Brevard County. The suspect in this case is just another example of how our current criminal justice system is failing to keep our community safe.
Palm Bay Police Chief Mario Augello releases official statement in regard to the Palm Drive Homicide Arrest.
Posted by Palm Bay Police Department on Saturday, April 22, 2023
Giambanco got out of jail in October after initially being kept behind bars for lobbing a rock into a window of a home where he trespassed in 2017.
After staying locked up for two years, he allegedly violated the terms of his release multiple times. The man was sentenced to 53 months in April 2021; however, he only stayed behind bars for 18 months and was arrested on April 15.
The arrest came after he allegedly battered an officer and trespassed. The next day, authorities freed him on bond.
“It was not immediately clear why Giambanco’s sentence was shortened,” the Post article said.
A neighbor of the elderly victim said his sister hopes the suspect “rots in jail,” he told Fox 35, adding he believes that would be “too good for him.”
He also said the victim was frail, used an oxygen tank, and usually kept his door open.
“Super nice guy. I couldn’t see him doing anybody wrong. Just a straight-up guy. I don’t even know what to think. I don’t know if I’m shocked, or I’m just numb,” the neighbor explained:
The charges against Giambanco are second-degree murder with a firearm, false imprisonment, grand theft with a firearm, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, the Post article said.
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