Bio

Anthony John Ponticelli was born on April 19, 1967. He grew up in Florida. Ponticelli became involved with drugs. He had connections with the drug community. By the time he was an adult, he lived in Marion County, Florida. He had a close friendship with a person named Joseph Leonard.

Murder Story

On November 27, 1987, Anthony Ponticelli went to a friend's house in Marion County, Florida. He stayed there for about half an hour before going to the home of Nicholas and Ralph Grandinetti, who were brothers. At their house, they talked about money that Ponticelli owed them for cocaine. Ponticelli said he would sell the cocaine and then pay them back.

The Grandinetti brothers agreed to go with Ponticelli to sell the drugs. After they left, a roommate named Timothy Keese returned home and noticed the brothers were no longer there. Later, a cousin of Ponticelli saw him at his friend's house with two people in the car. Ponticelli told him that he planned to kill the brothers for money and cocaine. He even showed his friend the gun he had.

At around 9:30 p.m., Ponticelli visited his best friend Joseph Leonard and returned a gun he had borrowed. He told Leonard that he had "did Nick" and asked for advice on what to do with the bodies. Ponticelli said the Grandetti brothers had been pressuring him for money, preventing him from leaving their house.

After leaving Leonard's house, Ponticelli had a flat tire and abandoned the car that contained the bodies. Later, he took a cab back to his friend's house. He confessed to having shot the Grandetti brothers for money and drugs. He even washed his clothes while he was there.

The following day, the bodies of the Grandetti brothers were found. Nicholas, who had been shot in the head, was still alive when discovered but later died from his injuries. Ralph was found dead in the back seat.

In the days after the murders, Ponticelli burned some of his clothing and admitted to a friend that he had shot the two men. He gave away the murder weapon, which led to his arrest shortly after.

Ponticelli faced two counts of first-degree murder and one count of armed robbery. After a trial, he was found guilty and sentenced to death on September 6, 1988. His appeals were denied, and he remained on death row.