Attorney General Peter F. Kilmartin announced today that Superior Court Justice Robert D. Krause sentenced Jesus Danilo Fuentes (DOB: 07/04/73), with a last known address of 6 Henry Street, Providence, to consecutive life sentences for the November 6, 2009 murder of Henry Vargas outside Club Platinum in Providence.
Fuentes was found guilty by a Providence County Superior Court jury on June 23, 2011 of first degree murder and discharge of a firearm, death resulting. The verdict was handed down after one day of jury deliberations that concluded a three week trial before in which the state presented over 20 witnesses.
During the trial, the state proved that after getting into a fight inside Club Platinum earlier in the evening, the feud between Jesus Fuentes and Henry Vargas escalated outside after the nightclub closed with Fuentes shooting Vargas as Vargas and his girlfriend were walking towards their car.
The state presented evidence that Fuentes fled to the Dominican Republic following the shooting. The Office of Attorney General presented the case to the Grand Jury, which handed up an indictment of murder in April 2010. Fuentes was arrested in the Dominican Republic and extradited back to Rhode Island. He has been held without bail at the ACI since his extradition from the Dominican Republic.
Commenting on the sentence, Attorney General Kilmartin said, "Henry Vargas was murdered over an argument in a club bathroom with Jesus Fuentes, whose anger was fueled by alcohol and the bravado of being a tough guy with a gun. That bravado led to murder and an attempt to escape justice by fleeing to a foreign country. I commend the good investigative work and cooperation of the Providence Police and my office to track down, apprehend and bring Fuentes to justice."
The case was prosecuted by Assistant Attorneys General Thomas O'Brien and Randall White on behalf of the Office of the Attorney General. The lead detective from the Providence Police Department was Detective Kenneth Court.