A Hernando County jury in Brooksville has cleared Jimmy Veloso Nguyen of third-degree murder in the 2021 beating death of John Michael Colon, but still found him guilty of aggravated battery causing great bodily harm with a weapon. Nguyen is scheduled to be sentenced on July 30 on the aggravated-battery conviction. The split decision leaves him facing far less prison time than several co-defendants who have already signed off on 30-year terms. Prosecutors have said the attack was tied to Latin Kings gang activity, which has kept the case in the local spotlight.
Jurors delivered the mixed verdict after weighing multiple felony counts, acquitting Nguyen of third-degree murder and another felony charge while convicting him only on the aggravated-battery count, according to R News. The outcome means Nguyen avoided a murder conviction but will still return to court for sentencing on the violent-battery charge.
Co-defendants Took 30-Year Deals
Four other men tied to the case did not roll the dice with a jury. Reynaldo Fonseca, Shayne Anthoni White-Gracteroly, Hector Luis Robles and Reynol Marsical Gonzalez Jr. each resolved their charges through plea agreements that landed them 30-year prison sentences, court records show. Calling out the stark contrast, R News wrote that the verdict highlights one of the biggest risks and rewards in the criminal justice system, where some defendants accept heavy plea deals while others gamble on trial.
How Investigators Say The Beating Went Down
The case dates back to July 2021, when a delivery driver spotted Colon down near Silent Breeze Street and Wolf Road in Brooksville. An autopsy later ruled his death a homicide, according to a press release from the Hernando County Sheriff's Office. Investigators said Colon had been a member of the Latin Kings and was beaten in a so-called "stripping" ritual after trying to leave the gang.
One defendant, Reynol Gonzalez Jr., had already pleaded guilty and received a 30-year sentence in January 2025, as reported when he was sentenced to 30 years in connection with the same homicide.
Why The Split Verdict Matters
The outcome underlines a familiar tension in serious felony cases. Plea deals offer certainty but can lock defendants into long sentences, while taking a case to trial preserves the chance of beating the most serious charges, at the risk of losing big. Nguyen's decision to go to trial spared him a murder conviction but still left him branded with a violent-battery verdict, a reminder that jury verdicts in multi-defendant gang cases can land somewhere in the messy middle.
What Comes Next
Nguyen is scheduled to return to court on July 30 for sentencing on the aggravated-battery conviction, where prosecutors and defense attorneys will pitch their recommendations to the judge. The Hernando County Sheriff's Office continues to ask anyone with information about the 2021 attack to contact Detective Tom Cameron or Hernando County Crime Stoppers.
