""Today's sentence holds this defendant accountable for this incredibly callous shooting of an innocent man,""
""Steven Vargas was a beloved brother and uncle who was violently and senselessly taken from his family and friends. And while gun violence is currently at record lows in Brooklyn thanks to the dedicated focus of law enforcement, my thoughts are with Mr. Vargas' loved ones today as they continue to deal with this profound loss.""
Matthew Passaro, 53, was sentenced to 25 years to life on Dec. 17 after a jury convicted him of second-degree murder on Nov. 18, 2025, for the 2017 killing of 47-year-old Stephen Vargas. On Sept. 20, 2017, Passaro encountered Vargas on Atlantic Avenue in Boerum Hill, exchanged words, left to change clothes, returned and fired seven rounds at Vargas at about 8:15 p.m., striking him six times and killing him instantly. Passaro fled and was arrested at the Port Authority Bus Terminal on Nov. 1, 2017, with a loaded .45-caliber pistol that ballistic testing tied to the murder.
Read at Brooklyn Paper
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