A Central Islip man faces 25 years in prison after pleading guilty to manslaughter for fatally shooting a Bay Shore man during an attempted robbery.
On October 1, 2022, Erick Garcia arranged to meet Carlos Guillen, 19, in a plan devised by Garcia to rob him. When Guillen arrived at the location Garcia selected, the defendant got into the passenger side of the vehicle and attempted to rob Guillen at gunpoint. Guillen accelerated and drove off with Garcia in the vehicle. Garcia shot Guillen and then jumped out of the vehicle while it was still in motion.
Guillen attempted to call 911 but was unable to speak during the call. After crashing his vehicle, he was transported to South Shore University Hospital, where he was declared dead of a gunshot wound.
Cell phone records place Garcia’s phone in the area of the crime at the time of the shooting and confirm that he fled to Florida, the day after the shooting, to avoid capture.
Garcia was also arrested in November of 2022 for possessing a loaded firearm in his waistband.
On July 7, 2026, Garcia, 22, pleaded guilty to Manslaughter in the First Degree, a Class B violent felony, and Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree, a Class C violent felony, before Acting Supreme Court Justice Steven A. Pilewski.
“This was a vicious plan with an equally vicious result,” said Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney. “The defendant’s plan to lure and rob the victim, Carlos Guillen, led to foreseeable violence. We will not tolerate violent crime like this in Suffolk County.”
Garcia is due back in court on August 6, 2026, where he is expected to be sentenced to 25 years in prison followed by five years of post-release supervision.