3 found guilty for 2019 murders in Tonawanda, Buffalo; 1 more pleads guilty
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BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Three people have been found guilty and one more person pleaded guilty in connection with two 2019 home invasions and murders that took place in Tonawanda and Buffalo, the Erie County District Attorney's Office announced Wednesday.
The defendants, 41-year-old Ernest Green and 41-year-old Daniel Rodriguez of North Tonawanda, as well as 27-year-old Wayne Robbins of Tonawanda, were found guilty of various charges, including murder.
In the first case, Green and Rodriguez broke into the home of 31-year-old Danielle Cretacci in the early morning hours of Aug. 27, 2019 on Ebling Avenue in Tonawanda. She was shot and killed "execution style" in front of her 11-year-old and 8-year-old daughters. The 11-year-old was shot twice in the abdomen and leg during the invasion and the 8-year-old was shot once in the neck, but both survived.
One of the girls played dead and then watched from a window as Green and Rodriguez fled, before going to a neighbor's house for help.
Green knew Cretacci, authorities said. Cretacci had recently received a workers' compensation settlement of around $30,000 and had posted about it on Facebook, where Green was a friend of hers. The money was stolen from the house during the robbery.
"They're both horrible incidents, but I guess when I think about these two little girls that is really the stuff is nightmares what they went through," acting Erie County District Attorney Mike Keane said at a Wednesday news conference.
One month after Cretacci was killed, on Sep. 27, 2019, Green, Robbins and another person, 31-year-old Sharee Bailey of Buffalo, broke into a home on Merrimac Street in Buffalo. Green and Robbins shot and killed 21-year-old Bethany Malloy and 26-year-old Shaquiel St. John during the home invasion.
Malloy was shot once in the head, while St. John was shot in the back as he tried to flee up a stairwell.
Similar to the Cretacci case, Malloy had also been the recipient of a work injury settlement and that money was also stolen. Malloy had been the former roommate of Green's girlfriend, which Keane said is how they knew of the money.
In total, Green was found guilty of five counts of second-degree murder, two counts of first-degree murder and two counts of second-degree attempted murder. Rodriguez was found guilty of one count of second-degree murder and two counts of second-degree attempted murder. Robbins was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder and four counts of second-degree murder. Lastly, Bailey pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree robbery.
The trial lasted 11 days before six hours of deliberation from the jury.
Sentencing for all is scheduled for May 3. Green, Rodriguez and Robbins are all facing a maximum of life in prison and Bailey faces up to 25 years.
"We want to make sure these people never get out of jail," Keane said. "And never have the opportunity to hurt or kill anyone again in the future."
Aidan Joly joined the News 4 staff in 2022. He is a graduate of Canisius College. You can see more of his work here.