Hempstead Man Pleads Guilty to Mowing Down Romantic Rival; Will Serve 15 Years to Life

Tobar pleads guilty to Murder after running over ex’s boyfriend while drunk

MINEOLA, NY - Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice announced today that a Hempstead man has pleaded guilty to murder and drunk driving charges after intentionally running over his ex-girlfriend’s boyfriend on a Hempstead street corner. He was promised by a Nassau County judge a sentence of 15 years to life in prison in exchange for his plea.

Lorenzo Tobar, 36, pleaded guilty to Murder in the Second Degree and Driving While Intoxicated. He is due back in court for sentencing April 29.

Rice said that shortly after midnight on July 20, 2008, the victim, Ludwin Ronaldi Marcia, was speaking to his girlfriend on his cell phone while standing next to his bicycle on the corner of Elk Street and Bennett Avenue. Her ex-boyfriend, Tobar, and the victim had had numerous verbal altercations in past years about the woman.

Rice said that on this night, Tobar and the woman had fought about their living arrangements and the victim was going to pick the woman up. As the victim waited a few blocks away and spoke to the woman on the phone, Rice said that Tobar got behind the wheel of his tan 2001 Toyota Highlander and drove up the street. When Tobar saw the victim standing on the sidewalk, he drove straight into him, dragging the victim 70 feet and killing him. Tobar’s blood-alcohol content at the time was .11.

Cell phone records indicate that Marcia was on the phone with his girlfriend at the time of the crash. The woman later told investigators that after Marcia’s phone went dead, she tried to call him back to tell him to meet her near all the police sirens. Vehicle reconstruction showed that Tobar had lined the victim up in the middle of his SUV and that he did not swerve at the last minute, as Tobar had told investigators.

“This was not simply the case of a tragic drunk driving crash, but rather a case of murder motivated by rage and jealousy,” Rice said.

Handling the case for the District Attorney’s Office is Assistant District Attorney Matthew Lampert of the DA’s Vehicular Crimes Bureau. The defendant is represented by Fred Braverman, Esq.