55-Year Prison Term For Convicted Killer In Drug Deal Gone Wrong

DEBARYLIFE – The murder that took place in Rockville in February 2022 resulted in the sentencing of a Silver Spring man.

The defendant, Malik Jefferson, 25, of Silver Spring, was sentenced to 55 years in prison by the Circuit Court for Montgomery County, Maryland, today, according to the Maryland State’s Attorney’s Office.

In connection with the killing of 22-year-old Jose Osvaldo Genao Romero, a jury found Jefferson guilty on January 26, 2024, of second-degree murder, using a firearm during the commission of a violent crime, and piracy. Because of that conviction, Judge Storm sentenced him to 50 years.

Jefferson received an extra five years in prison when it was determined that he had violated the terms of his probation in a First-Degree Child Abuse (134256-C) case.

Judge Storm sentenced co-defendant Jackson Garcia, 20, of Silver Spring, to life in prison with a five-year supervised probationary period upon his release, suspending all but 60 years of his sentence. This decision was made on March 21, 2024. Using a firearm in the commission of violent crimes, armed robbery, conspiracy to commit armed robbery, and first-degree murder were the counts Garcia faced and was found guilty of by a jury in July 2023.

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The reason for this is that on February 17, 2022, at the intersection of Bradley Avenue and Fletcher Place in Rockville, Montgomery County Police and Rockville City Police officers discovered Jose Osvaldo Genao Romero, 22, who was suffering from a gunshot wound. Later, at a nearby hospital, he passed away.

The victim was driven by the defendants to the scene of the murder after they had picked him up outside his house.

The assault was recorded on tape by a nearby security camera. The suspected gunman, Malik Jefferson, and his co-defendant, Jackson Garcia, were taken into custody as a result of an ongoing police probe.

Attorney John McCarthy for the State of Washington commented, “We applaud Judge Storm for imposing lengthy sentences that will protect the community from defendants who would so needlessly take a life.”

In a statement released after Jefferson was found guilty, the State’s Attorney said, “This is yet another instance of a marijuana deal gone wrong in Montgomery County that results in murder.” Notwithstanding recent legal developments in the state of Maryland, buying marijuana on the black market, which still exists, is still quite risky.

Peter Larson and Lauren Turner, assistant state’s attorneys, prosecuted this case.