Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney today announced that Brian Cordovano, 50, of Ronkonkoma, pleaded guilty to two counts of Manslaughter in the First Degree, and other related charges, for killing two men – Ian Saalfield, 45, of Lake Grove, and Robert Julian, 59, of Selden, in April 2022.
“Today, Brian Cordovano pleaded guilty to killing Ian Saalfield and Robert Julian in a selfish and inexplicable act of violence,” said District Attorney Tierney. “I hope that this plea provides a measure of comfort to the victims’ families and friends as they continue to mourn these unnecessary and tragic losses. With this conviction, the victim’s families will be spared the further pain and anxiety of a trial, while ensuring that the community is protected from any further crimes by this defendant.”
On April 26, 2022, Saalfield was reported missing by his wife. She advised police that she last saw her husband the day before with Cordovano, his childhood friend. Saalfield’s wife saw her husband leave their home with Cordovano at approximately 8:00 p.m., when he drove off in Saalfield’s white 2015 Lexus. Saalfield never returned home.
A few days later, on May 2, 2022, law enforcement found Saalfield’s Lexus abandoned in a parking lot in Holtsville. On that same day, police responded to a call from a Ronkonkoma motel where Cordovano was suffering from an overdose.
While Cordovano was being transported to Stony Brook University Hospital, the Suffolk County Police Department was able to link a silver 2004 Toyota Corolla left in the motel parking lot to Cordovano. A registration check revealed that the car belonged to Robert Julian. Police responded to Julian’s home and found the bodies of Saalfield and Julian inside, each dead due to gunshot wounds to the head. Investigators later determined that Cordovano killed the two on April 25, 2022.
On October 9, 2024, Cordovano pleaded guilty before County Court Judge Stephen L. Braslow, to:
- Two counts of Manslaughter in the First Degree, Class B violent felonies;
- Three counts of Robbery in the First Degree, Class B violent felonies; and
- Two counts of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree, Class C violent felonies.
Cordovano is due back in court for sentencing on November 20, 2024, and faces an agreed-upon sentence of 30 years in prison. He is being represented by Christopher Gioe, Esq.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Frank Schroeder of the Homicide Bureau, and the investigation was conducted by Detective Michael Repperger 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.