Eight men, including one Newark area resident, have been indicted by a federal grand jury in connection with the kidnapping and murder of a north Philadelphia business owner whose body was dumped in Cecil County.
U.S. Attorney William M. McSwain U.s. Attorney for Eastern Pennsylvania announced that three individuals were charged with the actual kidnapping, and five of the individuals were charged with firearms offenses.
The charges stem from an investigation into the kidnapping and murder of the bar owner in 2018.The indictment alleges that on June 19, 2018, the victim was kidnapped in a home in Philadelphia by seven of the defendants. During the kidnapping, the victim was restrained through the use of duct tape, handcuffs, and zip ties.
He was transported to Chester County, PA during the kidnapping, and ransom calls demanding hundreds of thousands of dollars were made to the victim’s wife, and to an associate of the victim. During the kidnapping, the victim was shot and killed. His body was dumped in Cecil, a county that borders Delaware.
“As alleged in the indictment, these ruthless individuals are a serious threat to the safety of our neighborhoods – not just in Philadelphia, but the entire mid-Atlantic region and beyond,” said U.S. Attorney William McSwain. “This indictment reflects our Office’s steadfast commitment to rid the streets of people who resort to intimidation and extreme violence to try to get what they want.”
Those charged with conspiracy to commit kidnapping are: Ivan Rangel Prieto, 34, of Asheboro, NC; Jose Castillo, 44, of Albuquerque; Jose Bernal, 30, of Newark, DE; Jose Delgado, 40, of Warminster, PA; Salvador Sanchez Guerrero, 47, of Philadelphia; Robert Favors, 39, of Philadelphia; John Perkins, 31, of Philadelphia; and Fermín Perez Mejia, 35, of Norristown, PA.
Those charged with kidnapping are: Rangel Prieto, Castillo, Bernal, Delgado, Sanchez Guerrero, Favors, and Perkins. Those charged with using a firearm in connection with a crime of violence are: Rangel Prieto, Castillo, Bernal, Delgado, and Sanchez Guerrero.
If convicted, Rangel Prieto, Castillo, Bernal, Delgado, Sanchez Guerrero, Favors, and Perkins face a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment. The statute also provides for the possibility of the death penalty. If convicted, Perez Mejia faces a maximum possible sentence of life imprisonment.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Philadelphia Police Department, with assistance from the Cecil County, Maryland Sherriff’s Office, the Southern Chester County Regional Police Department, and the Plymouth Township Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Amanda R. Reinitz and Everett Witherell.
