Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney today announced that Anthony Santiesteban, 32, of Centereach, was found guilty after a jury trial of Murder in the Second Degree and other related charges for fatally shooting Martina Thompson, 33, of East Patchogue in October 2022.
“This defendant deliberately and selfishly extinguished the life of Martina Thompson, a young mother,” said District Attorney Tierney. “I thank the jury for their time and careful attention to this case, and I thank the investigators and prosecutors for their dedication to getting justice for Martina and her family.”
The evidence at trial established that in the early morning hours of October 29, 2022, surveillance video captured Santiesteban and the victim engaging in a conversation next to Santiesteban’s Jeep Cherokee in a parking lot in Coram. Santiesteban was then seen on video following the victim into a fenced area at the rear of the parking lot. Immediately afterwards, at approximately 1:03 a.m., a gunshot is heard on the video recording, and Santiesteban was captured walking out of the fenced area with a semi-automatic handgun in his hand. Santiesteban then entered his Jeep and left the scene.
At 1:25 a.m., the police found the victim with a gunshot wound to her face, lying in a pool of blood. She was transported to Long Island Community Hospital in Patchogue where she was pronounced dead.
On November 2, 2022, police searched Santiesteban’s bedroom pursuant to a search warrant and recovered a loaded and defaced 9 mm handgun. Ballistics testing confirmed the bullet casing found next to the victim’s body came from the gun found in the bedroom.
On June 24, 2024, Santiesteban was convicted of the following charges after a jury trial heard before County Court Judge Anthony Senft:
- One count of Murder in the Second Degree, a Class A felony;
- Two counts of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree, Class C violent felonies; and
- One count of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Third Degree, a Class D violent felony.
Santiesteban is due back in court for sentencing on August 1, 2024, and he faces up to 25 years to life in prison. He is being represented by Jonathan Manley, Esq. and Peter Mayer, Esq.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Elena Tomaro of the Homicide Bureau and Assistant District Attorney Joseph Mallek of the Child Abuse and Domestic Violence Bureau, and the investigation was conducted by Detectives Luis Cabrera and Thomas Henry of the Suffolk County Police Department’s Homicide Squad.
Criminal complaints and indictments are merely accusatory instruments. Defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty. No one is above the law.