The suspect charged in the deadly shooting of a man in a hotel lobby who was visiting a New York suburb for his son’s Marist College "Family Weekend" was newly indicted in a different murder that happened two months before what authorities described as a random killing.
Devin Taylor, one of two suspects charged in the shooting of 53-year-old Paul Kutz at the Courtyard by Marriott, just miles from Marist College in Poughkeepsie, on Oct. 2, 2022, was back in court on Wednesday. This time, Taylor was arraigned on an indictment charging him with second-degree murder and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon in connection to the Aug. 9, 2022, killing of Darren J. Villani, the Dutchess County District Attorney's Office announced Wednesday.
According to court documents obtained by Fox News Digital, prosecutors allege Taylor walked up to Villani, described in his obituary as a 28-year-old father of a daughter, near the intersection of Mansion Street and Bement Avenue in Poughkeepsie and "fired a shot into his torso," causing the man to step back and collapse. The gunshot fractured one of the victim's left rib and perforated his lungs and heart, causing his death, prosecutors said.
WNBC reported investigators believed that the shooting was gang-related.
MARRIOTT HOTELS SUED OVER NEW YORK MURDER OF COLLEGE PARENT DURING FAMILY WEEKEND
Photos show Paul Kutz with his family in an image from 2013. (Facebook/Paul Kutz; Instagram)
Two months later, Kutz, a Long Island father, would be killed in the Marriott lobby.
Questions remain as to why Taylor was not brought into custody sooner. And his co-defendant in the Marriott shooting, Roy Johnson Jr., was considered a fugitive at the time.
Johnson was wanted on gun and drug-related charges by Georgia law enforcement since July 2022.
WNBC reported that law enforcement sources believed Johnson might have been in Poughkeepsie around the time of Villani’s death, but police didn’t pick him up off the streets because he had no permanent address, and they couldn't find him. As of Wednesday, Johnson has not been charged in connection to Villani’s killing.
Johnson and Taylor, who were both listed as homeless, were arrested following the Marriott shooting.
Image shows mugshot photo for Devin Taylor, who was arrested in connection with the Oct. 2, 2022 shooting at a Poughkeepsie, N.Y. Marriott (Dutchess County Jail)
It’s Johnson who was accused of shooting and killing Katz in the lobby. He is charged with second-degree murder and criminal possession of a weapon and was already ordered held without bond. Taylor was charged with two counts of criminal possession of a weapon in connection to the Marriott bloodshed.
On Wednesday, Taylor was arraigned before Dutchess County Court Judge Edward T. McLoughlin in connection to Villani’s murder and remanded without bail, according to the Times Union. That arrangement had been previously agreed upon during proceedings for the Marriott shooting.
If convicted on charges related to Villani’s death, Taylor could be sentenced to 25 years to life, prosecutors said.
Image shows mugshot photo for Roy Johnson, who was arrested in connection with the Oct. 2, 2022, shooting at a Poughkeepsie, N.Y., Marriott. (Dutchess County Jail)
"This indictment is a product of an ongoing city of Poughkeepsie police investigation which developed additional evidence that allowed this matter to be presented to a grand jury," Robert Knapp, the district attorney's bureau chief who is overseeing the investigation, said in a statement obtained by Fox News Digital. "The grand jury will continue its investigation into this incident to determine if any additional people were involved and should be charged."
Police enter the hotel where a man was found shot to death in Poughkeepsie, NY, Sunday, Oct. 2, 2022. (Action News)
WNBC previously cited a "source" in reporting that Taylor and Johnson were allegedly smoking a "PCP-like substance" in a hotel room that they were sharing at the Marriott when the alleged gunman went to the lobby for coffee. Johnson then allegedly began arguing with people in the lobby, at which time the suspect opened fire on the victim, the outlet reported.
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Johnson intended to shoot Kutz, but there were "no ties" between the victim and the gunman, Poughkeepsie Police Chief Joseph Cavaliere previously told reporters. The Times Union reported that the hotel room shared by Taylor and Johnson had been booked by an unnamed third party.
A search of the building revealed "manuals related to the making of explosive devices, as well as materials with the potential to be used as explosives" in a hotel room, police said.
Fox News’ Stephanie Pagones contributed to this report.
Danielle Wallace is a reporter for Fox News Digital covering politics, crime, police and more. Story tips can be sent to [email protected] and on Twitter: @danimwallace.
