Crime
The East Providence man was found guilty of first-degree murder in the fatal shooting of Peter Schifone.
An East Providence, Rhode Island man was sentenced Friday to life in prison without the possibility of parole after a jury found him guilty of a 2021 fatal shooting in North Attleborough, prosecutors announced.
Following a trial in Fall River Superior Court that began June 1, a jury convicted 38-year-old Adam Walker of first-degree murder, carrying a firearm, and carrying a loaded firearm, according to court documents.
Walker received a mandatory life sentence without parole for the murder conviction, along with a concurrent sentence of three to five years on the firearms charges, Bristol County District Attorney Thomas Quinn said in a press release.
“I am pleased that the jury held the defendant accountable for this senseless premeditated murder,” Quinn said. “This case went through a lengthy court process. I am pleased that the verdict will provide the family some consolation for the loss of their loved one.”
The conviction stems from the May 26, 2021 killing of 38-year-old Peter Schifone at his apartment on High Street in North Attleborough.
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Suspect in fatal North Attleborough shooting heads to court
Prosecutors said Walker shot Schifone once in the abdomen inside the apartment at 64 High St. Schifone was taken to Sturdy Memorial Hospital, where he later died.
Walker was arrested two days after the shooting and remained held without bail pending trial.
According to Quinn, evidence presented by prosecutors showed Schifone had communicated with Walker earlier on the day of the shooting and spent time with him before.
Surveillance footage showed Walker’s vehicle leaving the High Street residence before the shooting. Video later captured Walker returning to the area on foot.
Nine minutes after Walker arrived, footage showed him running from the residence at about the same time a 911 call was placed reporting that a man had been shot, Quinn said.
Investigators later recovered the firearm used in the shooting from a wooded area in East Providence. Prosecutors said cell phone data placed Walker in the same area where the weapon was found just hours after the homicide.
Authorities also interviewed witnesses, including the person who reported the shooting and had been in Schifone’s apartment earlier, according to court documents. That witness reported that, prior to the gunfire, Schifone and the suspect were engaged in a discussion regarding a “possible drug transaction.”
The witness further said that, although Schifone had instructed the suspect to leave, Walker returned a short time later and knocked loudly on the door. After Schifone again told the man to leave, the witness reported hearing Schifone ask, “You’re going to shoot me?” immediately followed by the sound of a gunshot, court records state.
Walker’s attorney did not respond to a request for comment Sunday night.
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