N.Y. man gets 40 years in prison for killing jeweler during 2020 robbery
STAMFORD — A New York man convicted of fatally shooting a local jeweler during a 2020 robbery was sentenced Wednesday to 40 years in prison.
Robert Rallo, 59, of Brooklyn, previously pleaded guilty to interference with commerce by robbery, interstate transportation of stolen property and using a firearm to cause a death during a robbery, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut said in a statement announcing his plea in April 2022. He faced up to life in prison when he was sentenced Wednesday in Bridgeport federal court.
On the afternoon of March 28, 2020, Rallo and Thomas Liberatore, then 62, of White Plains, entered Marco Jewelers at 16 Sixth St. in Stamford, according to the U.S. attorney’s office. They were dropped off by Paul “Tony Pro” Prosano, then 59, of Brooklyn.
Inside the store, Rallo became involved in a physical struggle with Marco Jewelers owner Mark Vuono, 69, while Liberatore raided display cases, according to the U.S. attorney’s office. Both Rallo and Vuono were armed, the office said.
During the struggle, Rallo managed to reach into the safe, take hold of a .357 Magnum revolver and shoot Vuono, according to the U.S. attorney’s office. Vuono was found lying on the floor in front of the safe and was pronounced dead at the scene.
Law enforcement located the thieves’ black Jaguar on Staten Island, according to the U.S. attorney’s office. Investigators conducted surveillance of the Jaguar and a black BMW X3 driven by Prosano pulled up next to the car two days after the robbery, the U.S. attorney’s office said.
Rallo exited the BMW and entered the Jaguar, according to the U.S. attorney’s office. Both cars then left the area, the office said, sparking a police pursuit.
The pursuit ended when Rallo and Prosano crashed both of the cars, according to the U.S. attorney’s office. They were apprehended after trying to run away, the office said.
Authorities examining Prosano’s phone discovered it has been used on March 19 and March 20, 2020 to pull up
a Greenwich Time article on the Byram Jewelers robbery “over a week before Prosano decided to participate in the Marco Jewelers robbery and murder,” a court filing said.
A search of Prosano’s apartment also turned up a notebook with a ledger of debts he owed to various people, along with handwritten instructions, court documents stated. The writings included a note that read “set off an alarm and you die,” “everything is insured” and “don’t be a hero,” according to the documents.
Investigators located 63 rings, eight bracelets, two tie pins, an earring and a cufflink inside the black BMW, and 23 pairs of earrings and three rings inside Prosano’s home, according to the U.S. attorney’s office. The valuables had all been stolen from Marco Jewelers during the robbery, the office said.
Rallo has been detained since his arrest, according to the U.S. attorney’s office.
Liberatore and Prosano were found guilty at trial in December of interference with commerce by robbery, also known as Hobbs Act robbery, and interstate transportation of stolen property. The two charges could put both behind bars for up to three decades. The jury also found Liberatore guilty of aiding and abetting the use of a firearm to cause a death during a robbery, for which he could serve up to life in prison.
Sentencing in those cases is still pending.