Three men were convicted and sentenced Thursday in the fatal shooting of Joshua Anthony Soto, a competitive figure skater who was at a friend's house in Kensington when a marijuana deal turned into a robbery.
Joseph Cuevas, 26; Luis Castillo, 26; and a third, unnamed defendant all were involved in the drug deal that happened at a home on East Cornwall Street near Kensington Avenue on Nov. 6, 2021.
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Soto, 18, was hanging out with his friend, Zbigniew Still, who was selling marijuana at the time, prosecutors said. Soto, who prosecutors said did not use drugs, was an emerging talent in the figure skating world, competing at the national level with Olympic aspirations.
Investigators said Soto was watching Netflix at Still's house when the three defendants broke in to rob them. Cuevas shot Soto in the chest. Soto then ran out of the house, but he collapsed on the sidewalk and later died. Still was shot multiple times in the stomach and leg, police said. He survived his injuries and later testified in court.
The three defendants fled the home in a car registered to Cuevas that was found burned in Northeast Philly later that month.
The unnamed defendant, who wore an ankle monitor at the time of the robbery, was arrested two days after the shooting and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors. When Still recovered from his injuries, he was able to identify the three defendants and confirm information that had already been shared with investigators.
Soto, who graduated from Agora Cyber Charter School, had planned to attend West Chester University. He competed with figure skating partner Mila Guberman in the Intermediate U.S. Figure Skating competition in 2019. After he was killed, a GoFundMe campaign raised more than $39,000 to support his family.
"Joshua Soto was a unique, humble and passionate person," Joshua's mother, Damaris Perez-Soto, said in a statement Thursday. "He was a pillar to his community. He loved his peers and his passion for skating was immeasurable."
A Philadelphia jury found Cueva guilty of second-degree murder, attempted murder and related gun offenses in March. He was sentenced to life in state prison without the possibility of parole. Castillo pleaded guilty to third-degree murder, conspiracy, aggravated assault and gun charges ahead of the trial. He was sentenced to 35-70 years in state prison. The third defendant pleaded guilty to third-degree murder, attempted murder and conspiracy. The district attorney's office said he was sentenced to less than 10 years in prison.