After mistrial, Yony Morales-Garcia convicted in 2022 double homicide in Georgetown

Following a mistrial earlier this year, a Sussex County jury has convicted a Georgetown man on two counts of first-degree murder and related charges.

Yony Morales-Garcia, 24, and his brother, Emner Morales-Garcia, 23, were masked when they went to El Nopalito restaurant on Route 113 in Georgetown in January 2022, Delaware State Police said in a news release. After Emner Morales-Garcia stole a necklace from a man and fled, Yony Morales-Garcia opened fire, according to a Department of Justice news release. Two men, 28-year-old Honorio Velasquez of Bridgeville and 31-year-old Armando Vicente Chilel Lopez of Georgetown, were struck and died of their injuries.

The murders rattled Georgetown residents, where there hadn't been a homicide in over 10 years. Community members, many of them Hispanic, gathered on The Circle to mourn the men's deaths, raise money for their families and call for justice.

"They weren't violent people," Alan Zunún, who identified himself as a cousin of Velasquez’s, said at the rally. "Our community is scared. They don’t feel comfortable going out and supporting local businesses or to dine."

Emner Morales-Garcia did not go to trial, pleading guilty to charges of robbery and conspiracy. He was sentenced to 27 years in prison, suspended after nine years, in February.

Yony Morales-Garcia went to trial in December but the jury could not reach a verdict and a mistrial was declared. The Department of Justice provided no comment on the mistrial and Yony Morales-Garcia's lawyer, Michael Heyden, did not return calls and emails.

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The retrial began May 13, at which Heyden made motions for both a mistrial and a dismissal, court records say. Both motions were denied by Superior Court Judge Craig Karsnitz.

Yony Morales-Garcia was found guilty of two counts of first-degree murder and related charges May 16. He faces a mandatory life sentence, scheduled to be handed down July 12.

Shannon Marvel McNaught reports on southern Delaware and beyond. Reach her at smcnaught@gannett.com or on Twitter @MarvelMcNaught.

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Double murder conviction for man charged in 2022 Georgetown shooting