VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — A Virginia Beach jury on Wednesday convicted a man who had been charged with murder in the 2016 shooting death of an 18-year-old Chesapeake high school student in a restaurant parking lot.
The trial surrounded Jacquan Wilson, 24, who had been charged in the death of Bryant Austin Cueto.
Prosecutors said Wilson shot Cueto to death on May 1, 2016, outside the Applebee's on General Booth Boulevard.
It's where investigators say two men met up with Cueto to buy Xanax.
In 2019, the judge declared a mistrial in the case, after two jurors had their car broken into, and two other cars were also damaged—one was that of a friend of Cueto and the other belonged to a bail bondsman. It all happened in the courthouse parking lot, and though the sheriff told the judge he believed it was random, the defense filed a motion for a mistrial.
The defense argued jurors who were impacted may have developed a prejudice against Wilson. The Commonwealth's Attorney joined in the motion saying jurors might fear retaliation after this happened.
Ultimately, the judge threw the case out.
On Wednesday, nearly seven years later, a jury returned a guilty verdict in the case, convicting Wilson of first-degree murder, armed robbery, and use of a firearm in the commission of felony.
Wilson's sentencing hearing is set for June 21.
In 2017, Andarion McInnis, 20, was found not guilty on a charge of first-degree murder. He was found guilty on robbery and firearm charges. McInnis was sentenced to 28 years behind bars.
