Massachusetts Parole Board Frees 18 Murderers, Including Pizza Shop Owner's Killer

Mumin Manavoglu was 47 years old and preparing food behind the counter at Stalex Pizza on Norfolk Street in Dorchester when Gary Johnson walked in wearing a mask, pointed a gun at him, and ordered the cashier to empty the register into a bag. Johnson took the money and left. Then he shot Manavoglu in the head.

Nearly two decades later, the Massachusetts Parole Board has granted Johnson's release, making him one of 18 convicted murderers paroled in recent weeks. Thirteen of the 18 were originally sentenced to life without parole.

Johnson was 18 years old when he killed Manavoglu in 2007. The Parole Board classified him as an "emerging adult" offender, a designation applied to 13 of the 18 parolees in this group, all of whom had initially received life-without-parole sentences.

The list of those freed extends well beyond Johnson's case. One parolee killed his girlfriend's 22-month-old daughter. Another was convicted of murdering a cab driver in Brockton in 1997. A fourth was originally sentenced to two consecutive life terms without parole for a double murder; the victims in that case were shot 16 times, including six shots to the head, and seven times, including five shots to the head, respectively, before that man was granted freedom.

No official statements from the Parole Board explaining the grounds for these decisions were included in available records, and parole conditions for any of the 18 have not been made public. The board has not confirmed whether the releases reflect a policy shift, a change in state law, or court rulings affecting sentencing for young offenders.

For restaurant workers, the Manavoglu case carries a particular weight. He was doing the work that defines the industry: prepping food, running a small shop, keeping the register. The violence visited on him at Stalex Pizza was the kind that workers in late-night and cash-heavy establishments know, at least abstractly, is a risk of the job. His killer is now free.