One of the men convicted last week in Erie County Court of a 2022 West Amherst home invasion faces up to 25 years in prison when he’s sentenced next month.
The other man, if the judge deems him a “persistent violent felony offender,” could face 20 years to life.
Mark S. Shadle, 34, of Kenmore, and Jason K. Evans, 37, of Depew, were convicted of beating and tying up 72-year-old William LaPorta Sr. in his Bucyrus Drive home to steal cash, jewelry and coins on Oct. 28, 2022.
Judge Susan M. Eagan is scheduled to sentence Jason K. Evans and Mark S. Shadle on Jan. 18.
A jury – which deliberated no more than 90 minutes – convicted Evans, 37, of Depew, and Shadle, 34, of Kenmore, each of first-degree robbery and first-degree burglary for the Oct. 28, 2022, home invasion on Bucyrus Drive that put a then-72-year-old man in a hospital intensive care unit for 18 days.
Prosecutors told the jury that Evans and Shadle were “strung out on drugs” when they broke into the home to steal things they could sell, “simply to feed their urges.”
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Erie County prosecutors rested their case against Mark S. Shadle and Jason K. Evans early Wednesday afternoon at the conclusion of William LaPorta's testimony. Evans, 37, of Depew, and Shadle, 34, of Kenmore, each face first-degree robbery and first-degree burglary charges.
Under state law, a person may be deemed a persistent violent felony offender after being convicted of a third violent felony.
Shadle went to prison in 2010 after being convicted of weapons possession, two counts of attempted burglary and one count of attempted robbery, according state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision records. He was sentenced to up to seven years and was paroled in 2016, according to the records.
Jurors in an Amherst home invasion trial in Erie County Court on Tuesday heard more about what prosecutors have described as "breadcrumbs" in the "digital trail" they say link the suspects to the crime.
William LaPorta Sr., the victim of the home invasion, was hit on the head with his own cane, zapped with a stun gun and had a knife held to his neck, he testified. The robbers stole cash, coins and jewelry.
Evans was a former employee of LaPorta, a roofing contractor.
The evidence presented by prosecutors included a “digital trail” of cellphone and cell tower data that linked the defendants – through the locations of their phones, photos and internet searches – to the crime.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorneys Christopher S. Safulko and Nicholas C. Bussi.