Albany 19-year-old sentenced for 2022 homicide

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- The Albany County District Attorney's Office announced the sentencing of Roland Riggins, 19, of Albany, in connection to a 2022 homicide case. Riggins will now face 25 years to life in state prison.

The indictment alleged that Riggins conspired with Justin Walker and Jordan McKenzie, both of Albany, to kill Christopher Bryant on April 29, 2022 by shooting him with a handgun near Grand Street and Madison Avenue in Albany. Riggins previously pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, and Walker and McKenzie were previously convicted and sentenced for their roles in the crime.

The District Attorney's Office shared that a relative of Christopher Bryant issued a statement on the sentencing, saying "You took a loved one from us. He had a good heart, was a positive person, with positive energy. We will never see him again, because you took him away from his family, and his two kids. It’s really sad that someone can do something like this, and have no reason to take someone’s life. It says a lot about a person. The worst thing about it is, you didn’t even know him…now there’s two lives lost; yours and his."

"Young men who are coming of age absolutely must be surrounded by the right influences.
This case is a tragic example of why," said District Attorney David Soares. "This defendant didn’t just senselessly kill a man at the direction of others; he permanently altered the course of his own life and wasted his potential."