Boy, 10, Tells His Dad’s Killer He Was ‘Taken from Me Too Early’ at Emotional Sentencing Hearing

A 10-year-old boy delivered a deeply emotional message to his father’s killer while speaking in court during the sentencing hearing.

On Tuesday, Oct. 7, Fernando “Chino” Rivera’s son, Nico, paid tribute to his late father during the sentencing of Terrence Johnson in Superior Court in Milford, Connecticut, according to the Hartford Courant.

Rivera, 35, was attacked from behind by Johnson, who was 18 at the time, on Oct. 31, 2020, while standing on a sidewalk at the corner of Washington Avenue and Elm Street in West Haven, the Hartford Courant and New Haven Register reported. Rivera later died at Yale New Haven Hospital on Nov. 1, 2020, according to his obituary.

“I didn’t get enough time [with dad] … My dad deserved to stay. My dad was taken from me too early,” Nico said in a video message during the sentencing, per the New Haven Register.

The young boy continued, “I wish he would go away and stay in jail for 100 years,” adding that he wanted his father “to know I miss him so much.”

Nico had been waiting for his dad to come home so they could go trick-or-treating together when the tragedy occurred.

Nico’s mother, Lindsee Baez — Rivera’s fiancée — revealed in court that their son had only recently learned the truth about his father’s death. When Rivera was killed, Nico was just 5 years old, and the family told him his father had died from a “boo boo.”

“He was truly my best friend,” Baez said of her partner of 17 years. “We grew up together, from our teenage years into adulthood.”

She added, “The road was bumpy along the way, but we never gave up on each other. We chose our family every single day, and that choice made him so happy.”

Terrence Johnson was sentenced to 38 years in prison after accepting a plea deal.

“You stole a life, you stole dreams and you stole love, and no sentence can ever undo the damage you caused,” Baez told Johnson in court.