LAS VEGAS (AP) — A former Las Vegas Strip casino card dealer intends to seek a chance at parole when he's sentenced for killing a resort executive and wounding a co-worker at a company picnic in 2018, a defense lawyer said Thursday.
Anthony Wrobel decided it was in his best interest to plead guilty before trial to murder in the shooting death of Venetian casino executive Mia Banks and attempted murder for wounding co-worker Hector Rodriguez, court-appointed defense attorney Joseph Abood said.
The plea agreement by the 44-year-old Wrobel says he could face up to life behind bars without the possibility of parole. Prosecutors didn't seek the death penalty after his arrest in Texas.
Abood said he'll seek the minimum sentence of 21 years before parole eligibility. Wrobel is due for sentencing Nov. 21.
"We will give the judge a full picture of who he is, and the circumstances surrounding his conduct," Abood said of his client.
Police and prosecutors say Wrobel acted alone in the shooting.
He left a note at his home expressing anger at Venetian management, asked co-workers at a public park in Las Vegas where company executives were seated, and fumbled with a 9mm handgun before opening fire, according to a police report.
Wrobel fled in a black and purple Dodge Charger that authorities found at McCarran International Airport.
Police said he drove then drove a silver Cadillac north to Cedar City, Utah, where he stole a Utah license plate from another vehicle and drove to Texas.
He surrendered after a sheriff's deputy noticed the Utah plate and found him sleeping in the car at a highway rest area off Interstate 40, not far from the New Mexico state line.
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