Philly veteran who strangled prostitute gets 18 to 36 years in prison

A Philly veteran, who claims he suffers from PTSD, was given a sentence of 18 to 26 years in prison for strangling a prostitute, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

The 2012 incident reportedly happened after the 43-year-old vet, Larry Rodriguez, went on a crack cocaine and drinking binge.

Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Judge Rose Marie DeFino-Nastasi told Rodriguez that she did not doubt he suffered from PTSD, but because of a similar drug and alcohol fueled incident in 2008, in which he tried to strangle his mother, he understood the consequences of his actions.

“You knew it. You knew it from the beginning, and yet you continued to do [crack] and you strangled that woman,” Judge DeFino-Nastasi told Rodriguez.

Sonya Lewis, the 41-year-old woman that Rodriguez was found guilty of strangling, was last heard from around 2 a.m. on June 30. When her friends asked Rodriguez where she was, he denied she was with him. They then threatened to pull a fire alarm and he let them in. Lewis’ body was found under a mattress, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

Rodriquez was found guilty of third-degree murder in October.

Matt Lee is a Web producer for Metro New York. He writes about almost everything and anything. Talk to him (or yell at him) on Twitter so he doesn’t feel lonely@mattlee2669.