A Miami man who killed a tire shop owner and his neighbor nearly seven years ago was sentenced to 45 years in prison Monday.
Matthew Guzman, 28, accepted a plea deal for his involvement in the 2010 deaths of Paul Barrow and Harry Ray. Before the sentence was given family members gave emotional statements.
"You cannot be human because only an animal with no sense of morality or compassion could do such a horrible thing," said Faith Xenos, Ray's sister.
Barrow was found shot in the head in December 2010 inside his business, Devonaire Service and Tire in Kendall.
"He is forever gone and our family is forever broken," widow Audree Barrow said.
In January 2011, Guzman was arrested for an unrelated burglary and confessed to shooting Barrow, police said. He also confessed to the murder of his neighbor, Ray.
"I couldn't digest how a child who had grown up next to my brother could do this," Xenos said.
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A judge sentenced Guzman to 45 years in state prison, however, some of Barrow's family members hoped for a harsher sentence.
"Justice is kinda served but not really. I wish he could've gotten life, but unfortunately he couldn't," Audree Barrow said.
"What can I do, I'm just happy I didn't have to sit through six weeks of a trial," daughter Stephanie Barrow said.
The judge said once Guzman's sentence is complete he will also have to serve six years of probation and undergo mental health counseling.
