2 men found guilty of murder in deadly 2024 home invasion in Lower Merion, Pennsylvania
Two men accused of shooting and killing a man in a home invasion last year in Lower Merion, Pennsylvania, have been found guilty on murder charges, a jury ruled on Thursday.
Charles Fulforth and Kelvin Roberts were found guilty on seven of the eight counts, including first-degree murder charges. The two men broke into a home on Meredith Road in Wynnewood last December and shot and killed Andrew Gaudio and left his mother, Bernadette Gaudio, paralyzed. They'll now each face life in prison.
Fulforth and Roberts were charged with murder, robbery and other offenses stemming from the deadly night. Investigators said on Dec. 8, 2024, the two men planned to rob an elderly Bucks County couple but they got the address wrong and ended up at the Gaudios' home in the Wynnewood section of Lower Merion in Montgomery County.
After the verdict, the Gaudio family thanked law enforcement and prosecutors for all of the work they did to bring a guilty verdict.
"This resounding guilty verdict is the product of the hard work of so many," Robert Gaudio said.
"The events that night in December were supposed to end in celebration, ended in the needless killing of a son, brother and friend to many," he added. "Andrew was a bright light in so many people's lives. A man who, in his final moments, was braver than we all could've imagined."
Attorneys for the Gaudio family called the case one of the most awful murders that he ever prosecuted.
"I'm just very satisfied with the verdict and grateful to the jury for considering it closely and giving us a result, which I think is justice in this case," Ed McCann, the first assistant district attorney of Montgomery County, said.
Frank Genovese, Roberts' attorney, said he was disappointed with the verdict. He also said his client was puzzled that he was not guilty of the conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, but found guilty of first-degree murder.
"The alternate theory of conspiracy is accomplice liability, so I think clearly that's what the jury returned their decision on," Genovese said.
Roberts' attorney said he has expressed sorrow for what happened to the Gaudio family in the home invasion. He said he'll express that when it comes time for sentencing, which will happen at a later date.
During four days of testimony, jurors heard from detectives, co-workers and forensic experts. The jury deliberated for four hours on Thursday.
In an emotional moment on Tuesday, Gaduio took the stand in her wheelchair and told the jury that she lives in constant pain and that it took all her strength to testify.
