A Longwood man faces two decades in state prison after authorities say he severely attacked an Uber driver in 2023, leaving the driver hospitalized with major facial injuries. Marquis A. Delcampo, 34, was sentenced to 20 years in prison on Monday after being convicted in January by a Seminole County jury of aggravated violence on a rideshare driver. Jovanny Mercado Guzman, 50, was hospitalized after suffering a broken nose and a shattered upper jawbone.
According to a news statement from the Office of the State Attorney, 18th Judicial Circuit, jurors found Delcampo guilty after reviewing witnesses’ cellphone video, surveillance footage from a neighboring business, Uber trip logs, and medical documents. According to the announcement, Delcampo attempted to utilize Florida’s Stand Your Ground law throughout the trial but was unsuccessful. Jurors also agreed that he should be classed as a jail releasee reoffender, which opened the door to harsher punishments during the second part of the trial, when prosecutors argued that his prior jail time and the quality of the evidence justified a longer sentence.
According to WESH, the encounter occurred approximately at 8:50 a.m. on Sunday on East State Road 436 in Casselberry. According to prosecutors, the ride came to an end when the Uber driver stopped and asked Delcampo to get out. Instead, Delcampo allegedly refused to leave, then walked out and repeatedly punched Mercado Guzman in the face and head while spectators recorded the incident. Video and trip records revealed at trial linked Delcampo to the crime scene.
In a separate release, the Office of the State Attorney stated that Circuit Judge Jessica Reckseidler sentenced Delcampo to a mandatory minimum of 15 years as a prison releasee re-offender, with no time off for good behavior, followed by an additional five years as a habitual felony offender. Delcampo was also ordered to pay $2,500 to cover the expense of prosecution, which included paying a doctor to examine and document the victim’s injuries.
With sentencing completed, authorities said the case concludes a prosecution that relied primarily on bystander recordings and security video. According to WESH, local prosecutors and law enforcement cited the cellphone and security video as vital to the conviction.
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