Felton Defendant Sentenced In Robbery-Murder Case
- A defendant in a Felton robbery that resulted in a murder was sentenced this week in Kent County court. - The court imposed a lengthy prison term and restitution, according to court records and prosecutor statements. - Victims' families expressed relief at the sentence, and prosecutors highlighted its role in local violent-crime accountability (wdel.com).
A Felton man was sentenced to 35 years in prison after a Delaware robbery plot ended with a 22-year-old Wilmington man dead. (news.delaware.gov) Charles Lowe, 47, of Felton, and Sierra Steiner, 30, of Newark, were sentenced on April 17 in Kent County Superior Court, according to the Delaware Department of Justice. Lowe was convicted of second-degree murder, first-degree robbery, first-degree conspiracy and a firearm count. (news.delaware.gov) Steiner was convicted of second-degree murder, second-degree conspiracy and first-degree robbery, and she was sentenced to 21 years in prison. Delaware prosecutors said the case stemmed from the March 19, 2023 killing of Bryan Pedroza on Dolphin Drive in Glasgow. (news.delaware.gov; delawareonline.com) Prosecutors said Lowe and Steiner arranged to rob Pedroza after setting up a meeting, and the robbery escalated into a fatal shooting. The convictions came under Delaware’s felony-murder rule, which allows a murder conviction when a death happens during certain violent felonies. (news.delaware.gov; easternshoreundercover.com) The sentencing closes one of the longer-running homicide cases tied to a 2023 crime in New Castle County but resolved this month in Kent County court. Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings said the prison terms held both defendants accountable for a robbery that “stole a young man’s life.” (news.delaware.gov) The Department of Justice said Pedroza’s family attended the sentencing and spoke about the loss they have carried for more than three years. Prosecutors said the family expressed relief after the judge imposed the prison terms. (news.delaware.gov; wgmd.com) With sentencing complete, the case has moved from trial verdicts to prison terms: 35 years for Lowe and 21 years for Steiner for the robbery that ended Bryan Pedroza’s life. (news.delaware.gov)
