CINCINNATI (WXIX) – Today is sentencing day for the manager of a Delhi Township tobacco store following a fatal shooting during a burglary last year.
Tony Thacker, 30, faces a maximum sentence of 22 to 26 years in prison.
The hearing begins at 9 a.m. Monday before Judge Wende Cross of the Hamilton County Common Pleas Court.
A Hamilton County jury convicted Thacker earlier this month of two counts of aggravated assault for his role in the fatal break-in.
According to Hamilton County Prosecutor Melissa Powers, Thacker was living in the back room of the VIP Smoke Shop in Delhi Plaza and working as a manager there when it was burglarized early on October 20, 2023.
He heard a glass breaking around 1 a.m. and came out of the back of the store with a gun.
Because of a felony conviction in his youth, he is not allowed to own a gun.
When he reached the front of the store, Thacker saw the suspects, including 20-year-old Amontae Carter and 16-year-old Travis Johnson, come in and began firing the gun, prosecutors said.
Thacker then fired several shots at the suspects, killing Johnson.
The other suspects fled in stolen cars.
According to Powers, Thacker continued shooting even when the suspects no longer posed a threat.
According to court records, three juveniles were recently convicted in connection with the incident:
- A 15-year-old boy confessed to five serious crimes, including manslaughter, burglary and receiving stolen goods
- A 17-year-old man admitted to seven serious crimes, including manslaughter, grand theft auto and receiving stolen goods, according to other court records.
- A 14-year-old girl admitted to committing four serious crimes, including receiving stolen goods, manslaughter and burglary.
Four adults still face charges in connection with the break-in, including Carter and 18-year-old Messiah Hart, both of whom are accused of murder.
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