This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
When 25-year-old Amar Miljkovic stood before a judge Friday to be sentenced for a killing a man during an ambush-style robbery last year, the victim's mother chose to be absent.
Tammy Thompson said in a letter filed with the court that she had no desire to face the person who fired four bullets into her son, 32-year-old Orlando J. Roybal, on Dec. 4, 2014.
"It is so totally devastating," the woman wrote. "[It] brings me to my knees crying, knowing that I will never ever see my son's face, hear his voice or hug him again. I will never hear him say, 'Hey mama, how you doing,' because of Amar's intentional, cold and ill-willed actions."
In Thompson's letter, she asked 3rd District Judge Katie Bernards-Goodman to sentence Miljkovic "equal to his crime," saying that a minimum of 20 years would not be enough.
But the judge handed down a 15-years-to-life sentence to Miljkovic — the mandatory minimum sentence required.
During his Friday hearing, Miljkovic offered an apology to Roybal's family for the murder.
"I took a son, a brother, a father and a friend," he said. "It is an action I regret ... I truly am sorry."
But prosecutor Joshua Graves told the judge that he didn't feel Miljkovic was truly remorseful for the killing — pointing to a pre-sentence report where the defendant said he was shaking from adrenaline, which caused him to pull the trigger. "He shot Mr. Roybal four times," Graves said. "Boom, boom, boom, boom, in the back. The bottom line is, you don't come to a robbery with a gun, point it at someone and then because you feel like they might shoot you, shoot them four times."
Miljkovic was the first of four people charged in connection to Roybal's murder to resolve his case. Three co-defendants — Whitney Marie Connor, 28; Cameron Roger Fuger, 27; Chris Villiard, 29 — have all waived their right to a preliminary hearing. Arraignment hearings for the three are set for Friday.
The co-defendants are charged with one count each of murder and aggravated robbery. Connor, who allegedly admitted lying to police several times during the investigation, also was charged with one count of second-degree felony obstructing justice.
Police have called Roybal's shooting an "ambush."
"Whitney Connor told police that Amar Miljkovic needed money, so a plan was concocted to rob [a woman]," South Salt Lake police have said. "Cameron Fuger and Chris Villard were recruited to assist in the robbery."
Connor arranged to meet the woman on Leland Avenue (3015 South), and went there with Miljkovic, Fuger and Villiard in Miljkovic's SUV, according to charging documents.
That night, the woman drove Roybal to an area near 600 E. Leland Ave., where they met Connor. Once Connor got into the backseat, Roybal said, "We're about to get got," as several men wearing bandanas on their faces approached the vehicle, according to the charges.
Two men approached the driver's side, opened the door and allegedly demanded the woman's purse, while one of the men pointed a gun into the vehicle. One of the men then grabbed the woman's purse and shot Roybal multiple times, according to the charges.
Afterward, the woman saw three people run to a white SUV, charges state.
Roybal was taken by medical helicopter to Intermountain Medical Center, where he died. The woman who was with him was not hurt.
Miljkovic was arrested three months later after a police investigation.