OTISVILLE, NY — Nicholas Tartaglione, 54, a former police officer, has been sentenced to four consecutive life sentences for his leadership role in the 2016 murders of Martin Luna, Urbano Santiago, Miguel Luna, and Hector Gutierrez.

Tartaglione orchestrated the kidnapping and murders of all four victims on April 11, 2016. U.S. District Judge Kenneth M. Karas delivered the sentence.

According to the allegations, Tartaglione killed Luna because he believed he had stolen approximately $250,000 meant for the purchase of cocaine.

Urbano, Miguel, and Hector were killed because they witnessed Martin’s murder and were in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Tartaglione buried all four victims in a mass grave on his remote property in Otisville, NY. The FBI’s Hudson Valley Safe Streets Task Force located the grave in December 2016.

Judge Karas described Tartaglione as a “monster” who showed no remorse for his conduct. The case was prosecuted by the office’s White Plains Division, with assistance from various law enforcement agencies.