Stowe man given life without parole plus 10 to 21 years in 2016 beating death

Tom Davidson | Monday, January 6, 2020 1:13 p.m.

Branden Anthony Frazier

A Stowe man was sentenced Monday to serve the rest of his life in prison for the 2016 beating death of a 74-year-old man from McKees Rocks.

Branden Anthony Frazier, 28, was given the life sentence for his October conviction on charges of first-degree murder in the killing of Benito Nicoletti.

Allegheny County Judge Kevin Sasinoski also tacked on a 10-to-21-year sentence for the other charges including burglary, robbery and theft.

Frazier’s attorney, Marvin Leibowitz, said he intends to appeal the sentence.

“I’m a big believer in the jury system. I think the jury erred,” Leibowitz said.

Nicoletti’s body was found June 1, 2016, on a couch in his Vine Street home where he lived alone. Nicoletti had a head wound and blood was spattered on the walls and ceiling of the room, according to the criminal complaint filed against Frazier.

Authorities found a car rented in Nicoletti’s name outside the house in Stowe where Frazier had been living, and police found a backpack with bloody jeans in a backpack there, according to a criminal complaint.

District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr. initially planned to seek the death penalty for Frazier, but he withdrew that request.