Two men sentenced to life in prison for fatal 2019 Taunton stabbing

FALL RIVER, Mass. (WPRI) — Two men will spend the rest of their lives behind bars for the “brutal and senseless” 2019 murder of a Taunton man, according to Bristol County District Attorney Thomas Quinn III.

Jerome Middleton of Fall River and Khaylon Cruz of New Bedford were sentenced Wednesday to life in prison for the murder of 31-year-old Justin Paulo. Both men found guilty cases of first-degree murder and armed robbery earlier this month.

Taunton police responded to a reported assault on January 5, 2019, and found Paulo critically injured in a yard on Wilson Street. He was taken to Rhode Island Hospital by family members but died the next day. During the attack, Paulo was stabbed multiple times and his gold chain was stolen, prosecutors said.

BACKGROUND: 2 arrested in stabbing death of Taunton man

Cruz was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for first-degree murder, plus an additional 6 to 10 years for armed robbery.

Middleton was sentenced to life in prison with parole eligibility after 30 years after completing a nine-to-12-year sentence for an unrelated armed robbery. He was also given an additional prison sentence of 6 to 10 years for his second crime of armed robbery, which will run after his other sentences.

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