Naman Shrestha
In the episode titled ‘Dead Body Shop’ of Investigation Discovery’s ‘Who Hired the Hitman?,’ the focus is on the horrific killings of three men in the B&B Automotive shop in Windsor Locks, Connecticut, in the summer of 2003. As the detectives investigated the gruesome murders, they uncovered a murder-for-hire plot and an extramarital affair that served as the motive for the crimes. All the intricate details of the case are covered extensively with the help of insightful and emotional interviews with the victims’ loved ones and the officials linked to the investigation.
Lorne Stevens, Barry Rossi, and Robert Stears Were Ambushed at Their Workplace
Born on December 22, 1960, to John Stears III and Hinda Stears in Hartford, Connecticut, Robert J. “Bobby” Stears spent most of his life living in the town of Enfield. Growing up with his brother and four sisters, he attended Fermi High School and graduated with flying colors. Given his love and passion for automobiles, Robert became an auto mechanic and also co-owned B&B Automotive in Windsor Locks. His other interests included boating, golfing, bowling, snowmobiling, and NASCAR. On the personal front, he was married to Shelley L. Stears, with whom he shared a daughter named Melony A. Stears.
Described as a devoted family man, he was equally dedicated to his work at the automotive shop, where he also worked with Lorne Richard Stevens. The son of Peter and Dorothy Sinclair Stevens, he was born on August 3, 1964, in Hartford, Connecticut. Loved by his brother Peter and four sisters, Norma Salmon, Brenda Stevens, Cynthia Stevens, and Lisa Stevens, Lorne was also a longtime resident of Enfield, Connecticut. Besides being an employee at the B&B Automotive, he was also a member of the Connecticut Fly-fishing Association and Broad Brook Angling Club and a senior warden of the Morning Star Lodge A.F. & A.M., Warehouse Point. Married to Linda Scully DeAlba Stevens, Lorne was also a father to Joseph DeAlba and Rita DeAlba.
Another colleague of Lorne and Robert was Barry Scott Rossi, who was born on February 13, 1960, in Springfield, Massachusetts. The son of Jane Louise Tuomala Rossi and brother of Paul Rossi Jr., Barry was the one whose initial made up the name of B&B Automotive alongside Bobby’s. The two business partners were known to share a bond deeper than brothers. Unfortunately, the lives of the three automotive shop employees — 42-year-old Robert, 38-year-old Lorne, and 43-year-old Barry — ended on the fateful night of July 30, 2003, right when they were about to close shop. When the authorities arrived at the scene, they found the three men shot to death, resulting in the launch of a triple homicide investigation.
Three Men Were Involved in the Murders of Lorne Stevens, Barry Rossi, and Robert Stears
As part of the investigation, the authorities dug deeper into the lives of Lorne Stevens, Barry Rossi, and Robert Stears in order to identify the motive behind the triple homicide. Soon, Robert’s wife, Shelly Stears, reached out to them and claimed that she had an extramarital affair with a man named Benedetto Cipriani, whom she met in July 2001 through the internet. As per her claims, they secretly dated for about a year before she broke up with her.
She told the detectives that Benedetto kept contacting her as he wanted her to leave her husband and start a new life with him. It turned out that when Shelly refused to leave Robert Stears for him, Benedetto became furious and reportedly began plotting Robert’s death. In order to carry out his dirty deed, he got in touch with three men — Jose Guzman, Erik Martinez, and Michael Castillo — and convinced them to kill Robert for $5,000 by claiming that he had raped a Hispanic woman. Thus, on the fateful night of July 30, 2003, Michael Castillo drove Jose Guzman to B&B Automotive in Windsor Locks, where the latter made Robert, Barry, and Lorne lie on their stomachs on the garage floor at gunpoint.
Jose then shot the three men to death. As per reports, he killed Barry and Lorne because they were witnesses. Following the murders, the orchestrator of the crime, Benedetto Cipriani, fled the country eight days after the shootings and hid in Italy. However, several months later, he was eventually arrested in his native nation in April 2004. Over the next three years, he tried his best to fight extradition, but eventually he was turned over to Connecticut in July 2007 in order to pay for his crimes.
Jose Guzman and Benedetto Cipriani Are Incarcerated at Separate Connecticut Prison Facilities Today
Out of the three men hired by Benedetto Cipriani, Jose Guzman and Erik Martinez pleaded guilty to the murder charges against them and agreed to testify against Benedetto in exchange for a lesser sentence. Meanwhile, the third man, Michael Castillo, was found guilty of murder, along with other charges, related to the triple homicide of Lorne Stevens, Barry Rossi, and Robert Stears, and was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Since the orchestrator of the murders pleaded not guilty to the charges against him, his trial began in late 2008.
In December 2008, Benedetto was finally found guilty of conspiracy and accessory to murder in connection with the killings. A few months later, in early April 2009, his sentencing hearing took place. The convict took the stand and maintained his innocence, claiming that he was a victim of a conspiracy and that the prosecution had presented false testimony during his trial. He added, “I’m not asking for clemency for something I didn’t do. I have undergone a trial that asked for revenge, a trial that asked for a lynching.”
Benedetto continued his claims of innocence, but was sentenced to 200 years in prison for his crimes. Later, the gunman, Jose Guzman, was sentenced to life in prison, while Erik Martinez, who provided the murder weapon, was sentenced to 25 years in prison. As of today, Jose is serving his sentence at Garner Correctional Institution in Newtown, Connecticut, while Benedetto is incarcerated at Cheshire Correctional Institution in Cheshire, Connecticut.
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