Two arrested in the fatal shooting of Jorge Garcia at a Providence breakfast counter

Mark Reynolds, The Providence Journal
·2 min read

PROVIDENCE — Two men face charges in the Sept. 25 killing of a 38-year-old man gunned down as he ate breakfast in a restaurant, the police said Tuesday.

Julio Castro and Juan Rivera were arrested separately Nov. 5 after detectives secured arrest warrants as part of their investigation into the Sept. 25 homicide of Jorge Garcia at Roque's Cafe on Broad Street, according to Providence police detective Maj. David Lapatin.

A Providence police task force handcuffed Castro on Ford Street and Massachusetts State Police captured Rivera at Logan Airport, Lapatin said.

The men, both 34, of Providence, knew Garcia, according to Lapatin.

"They planned this," he said.

Several shots fired

Previously, Lapatin has said that Garcia and a friend were at Roque's counter around 9:30 a.m. when someone "opened the door to the restaurant, pointed a gun directly at Mr. Garcia and fired several shots."

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Garcia, who became the city's 19th homicide victim, was taken by rescue to Rhode Island Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Investigators have "some ideas" as to why Garcia was targeted, said Lapatin, who declined to elaborate.

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North Carolina investigation

Meanwhile, investigators looking into a homicide in a national park in North Carolina have shown interest in Rivera and Castro, Lapatin said.

Both men are charged with first-degree murder and conspiracy in Rhode Island, according to court records.

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Castro was arraigned Nov. 8 in District Court, Providence, appearing before Judge Pamela Woodcock-Pfeiffer, who ordered him held without bail.

Rivera was arraigned Nov. 12 before Judge Anthony Capraro. He too was held without bail, records sh.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Julio Castro and Juan Rivera, charged in Providence breakfast killing