Man Faces Life in Prison After Robbing and Beating 82-Year-Old Tinton Falls Resident

A Massachusetts man is facing life in prison after he was found guilty of robbing and beating an 82-year-old Tinton Falls resident at his home, according to Monmouth County Acting Prosecutor Christopher Gramiccioni.

Rafael LaBoy, 31, of Ludlow, Massachusetts was convicted of first- degree robbery, second-degree burglary, third-degree aggravated assault and third-degree theft, and he remains incarcerated at the Monmouth County Correctional Institution (MCCI) in Freehold. Laboy is scheduled for sentencing on Feb. 22, 2013 before Monmouth County Superior Court Judge Anthony J. Mellaci, Jr.

Acccording to a release from the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office:

On May 21, 2009, Laboy and his cousin, Eddie Laboy, were driving a stolen car south on the Garden State Parkway in Tinton Falls when the car broke down en route to Miami Beach. The two men abandoned the car and wandered into the victim’s neighborhood in Tinton Falls in search of another car.

Laboy and his cousin approached the victim’s house and asked to use his telephone. The victim, then an 82 year-old man living alone, refused the request but offered to call for help on their behalf. Laboy and his cousin declined the offer and left the area.

Hours later at about 2 a.m., Laboy and his cousin returned to the victim’s house and kicked the door in. After encountering the victim, the two men began punching him and knocked him to the ground, demanding to know the location of his car keys. While his cousin searched the house for the keys, Rafael Laboy continued to kick the victim and struck him in the head with a lamp.

After Eddie Laboy found the car keys, the two men stole the victim’s car, drove it to Miami Beach and then abandoned the car. The victim was transported to a local hospital where he was treated for multiple facial fractures.

Because of the severity of his injuries, the victim was re-admitted to the hospital four more times over the course of the next two months, and required surgery to resolve a life- threatening condition.

Law enforcement officers from Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office and the Tinton Falls Police Department immediately commenced an investigation, and later identified Rafael Laboy and his cousin as the culprits through two referenced stolen cars. Both men were later arrested in Belmont, Massachusetts on June 13, 2009.

Rafael Laboy is eligible for an extended term or enhanced sentencing due to his status as a persistent offender under State law. Accordingly, Laboy faces a maximum potential term of up to life imprisonment for the first-degree robbery conviction.

In addition, the second-degree burglary carries up to 20 years’ imprisonment, and both convictions are subject to the “No Early Release Act,” which means that Laboy must serve 85% of the sentence imposed for those crimes before he becomes eligible for parole. The third-degree aggravated assault and theft convictions each carry up to 10 years’ imprisonment if Laboy is sentenced to an extended term.

Eddie Laboy pleaded guilty to first-degree robbery on December 21, 2009 and agreed to cooperate in the prosecution of his cousin. On April 9, 2010, Judge Mellaci sentenced Eddie Laboy to 10 years’ imprisonment with an 85% period of parole ineligibility, in accordance with the plea agreement.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant Monmouth County Prosecutor Matthew Bogner. Laboy was represented by William Wackowski, Esq. of Point Pleasant.