More than four years after Giovanni's Pizzeria owner Rosario “Ross” Zito was shot and killed outside his Albuquerque restaurant, the man accused in his death now has a trial date on the books for February 2027. A pretrial appearance is scheduled for next month, following a mistrial that derailed the case earlier this year.
According to KOAT, 27-year-old Sylcan Alcachupas is accused of killing Zito in a shooting at Giovanni's in August 2022. The station reports Alcachupas is scheduled for a pretrial appearance in December 2026, ahead of the trial set for February 2027. He faces an open count of murder, along with charges of robbery and tampering with evidence.
The station's account describes Alcachupas approaching Giovanni's one night, demanding money and firing a warning shot into the area. Employees reportedly handed over tip money before Zito drew his own handgun and became engaged in a verbal confrontation with Alcachupas, which ended with Zito shot and killed. Alcachupas was later arrested as the suspect in the killing.
A Mistrial Over a Missing Juror
The case had already gone to trial once before the new date was set. A mistrial was declared on January 9, 2026, per the same account from KOAT. The station's reporting does not detail why the mistrial occurred, but other outlets have filled in that gap.
Per KOB 4, Judge Jennifer Wernersbach made the ruling after an issue arose involving a juror, and a special prosecutor attributed it to a lack of jurors to continue. The Albuquerque Journal reported that a juror's departure left only 11 members on a panel that had started with 12 and no alternates, forcing the mistrial. The Journal's reporting also spells the defendant's first name as “Sylvan,” while KOAT has reported it as “Sylcan” — a discrepancy that remains unresolved across coverage of the case.
A Case That Has Shifted Dates Repeatedly
Friday's scheduling update is only the latest in a long string of moved dates for the case. KOB 4 reported after the mistrial that a new trial was expected to be scheduled sometime between April and August of this year, a window that came and went without the case going back before a jury. Yahoo News similarly reported that Alcachupas was set for a new trial in August following the January mistrial, but that date was also moved.
The case's timeline stretches back even further. ABQ RAW reported in 2024 that Alcachupas's trial was originally scheduled to begin on October 9 of that year, before Judicial Officer Jennifer J. Wernersbach. Separately, a KRQE report listed an eight-day trial beginning July 22, 2027, a date that conflicts with the February 2027 trial window KOAT has now reported — a discrepancy that has not been explained in available reporting.
For now, the most recent scheduling comes from KOAT, which lists the pretrial appearance for next month and the trial itself for February. Zito's death remains a painful chapter for Albuquerque's restaurant community, and the case's repeated delays mean a resolution is still months away at the earliest.
