FL Man Who Murdered Father Sentenced To Prison: State Attorney

MANATEE COUNTY, FL — A man who murdered his father was sentenced to 30 years in prison, according to a news release from State Attorney Ed Brodsky’s office.

Matthew Briganti, pleaded guilty to the charge of second-degree murder on Friday and was sentenced on the same day. The crime carried a maximum possible sentence of life in prison.

Briganti, then 49 years old, called 911 on July 31, 2021 saying that his 68-year-old father, who he lived with, may have fallen, Brodsky’s office said.

Deputies with the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office and other first responders who arrived at their home found the victim had been dead for “many hours.”

Investigators determined that his father’s death happened “under suspicious circumstances” and that he had “obvious trauma” to his head, the state attorney’s office said.

During interviews, Briganti continued to tell detectives that his father “must have fallen.”

An autopsy by the medical examiner found that his father’s death was caused by blunt impact head injuries and that he was intentionally hit in the head at least two times with a heavy object, Brodsky’s office said.

Blood spatter at the scene also showed that the victim was hit at least two times in the head with an object.

Video surveillance cameras at all entrances and exits to the home showed that Briganti’s father last entered the residence on July 30, 2021, around 1:45 p.m. Between then and when law enforcement arrived at the home about 30 hours later, Briganti was the only one seen leaving or entering.

“This was a brutal murder that could only stem from evil and hatred,” Charlie Lawrence, assistant state attorney, said. “The defendant’s futile attempt to make his father’s murder appear as an accident served as further proof of his guilt. This crime could not have been solved for what it truly was without the hard work and dedication of the men and women of the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office.”