LAKE MARY, Fla. — A 26-year-old man who confessed to killing a woman inside a Lake Mary dry cleaning business last year was sentenced Friday to life in prison.
Andre Luciano told police he bought the gun to kill himself, but instead he shot and killed Nu Dang, 60.
Dang was found shot to death and tied up in the bathroom of the dry cleaning business on Country Club Road and Lake Mary Boulevard in September 2015.
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Investigators said they arrested Luciano in Kissimmee, where he was found with Dang's car.
Luciano pleaded guilty to several charges, including first-degree premeditated murder, to avoid the death penalty, his public defender said. His public defender said there was an overwhelming amount of evidence in the case.
Dang’s family cried in the courtroom. A statement from Dang's daughter was read in court, saying, in part, "I recently got engaged and planning a wedding without her has been excruciatingly hard. The defendant robbed me of precious moments, such as shopping with her for the perfect mother-of-the-bride dress and wedding dress."
"He forcefully took an amazing mother, wife, sister, aunt and friend from so many people. The world is a sadder place without her here," the victim's daughter said in a statement.
Prosecutors said Luciano was upset because Dang would not let him use the restroom. Luciano used a gun to force Dang into the bathroom, and then tied her up using zip ties and shot her. Officials said he stole cash from the register and fled in the victim's car.
Prosecutors said Luciano confessed to his uncle about the killing, and then confessed to detectives.
An arrest report said Luciano told investigators, "I killed her," and that Dang was shot.
"Maybe in her back, maybe in her spine, hopefully," said Luciano when asked where he shot Dang.
Luciano was in the U.S. Coast Guard and did legal work for the district attorney in the Bronx up until about three months ago when he came to central Florida to live with his mother.
Dang's sister, Chau McAfee, said her family moved to the U.S. from Vietnam in 1979 and for years her sister ran the business.
"Everybody knows her; 28 years she's been here. I don't know how somebody could come here, take her life like that," said McAfee.
Luciano also pleaded guilty to robbery and kidnapping. He had no criminal history before the incident.
Cox Media Group
