Tony Saffo managed to crawl out of his car despite being injured from bullet wounds in March 2016 before Atlanta police arrived to Jenkins Auto Body Shop to help him.
As he took what would be his last breath, Saffo uttered the name of the person he said killed him: Tevision Troy.
Troy, 46, was sentenced to life in prison without parole Tuesday, 18 years after he pleaded guilty to another shooting, Fulton County District Attorney spokesman Dontaye Carter said.
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According to police, Troy and a friend of Saffo’s got into an argument an hour before the shooting. Saffo, 46, got between the men and asked Troy to leave.
Witnesses told police Troy felt disrespected by Saffo, his friend of more than 10 years, and returned an hour later with a semi-automatic submachine gun and shot Saffo multiple times. Carter said Troy apologized to onlookers nearby before fleeing the scene.
Saffo suffered two gunshot wounds to his torso and one to his left arm, Carter said.
Two days later, police found Troy during a traffic stop with a packed suitcase in tow. Authorities believed he was intending to leave town.
A jury convicted Troy of murder, aggravated assault and weapons charges.
During the investigation, GBI officials matched ballistic evidence in Saffo’s murder to a shooting Troy pleaded guilty to committing in 1998, leading detectives to believe he used the same gun in both crimes.
According to authorities, Troy shot Marquis Edwards in the chest during a drug deal on Jonesboro Road in 1998. Edwards survived the shooting.
Troy pleaded guilty to aggravated assault and weapons charges in 2001. He served seven years in prison, Carter said.
The gun in the 1998 shooting was never recovered, Carter said. The shootings are not related.
In addition to the life sentence for Saffo’s murder, Troy must also serve 25 years.
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