A 35-year-old Princeton graduate dubbed the “Ivy League Killer” was sentenced to 30 years to life in prison Friday for fatally shooting his hedge fund manager father after having his allowance reduced, the Manhattan District Attorney’s office said.
Thomas Gilbert Jr. was convicted in June for killing his father, Thomas Gilbert Sr., 70, in his parents’ luxury Midtown Manhattan apartment on Jan. 4, 2015.
Gilbert. Jr.’s defense had hoped the Ivy Leaguer would be found not guilty by reason of insanity.
In addition to paying his $2,400-a-month rent, Gilbert Jr.’s parents had been giving their son a $600 weekly allowance. Just before Gilbert Jr. shot his father, he had been told that his weekly allowance would be reduced to $400, police said.
After killing his father, Gilbert Jr. placed the weapon in his father’s hand to stage the incident as a suicide before fleeing the scene, according to the DA’s office.
Gilbert Jr., who claimed to work in finance but had no verifiable recent work history according to police, will be eligible for parole after 30 years.
“While nothing can undo the tragedy of Mr. Gilbert’s death, I hope that the resolution of this case helps his loved ones as they continue to heal from this devastating loss,” Manhattan DA Cy Vance said in a press release.
In May, Collider reported that actor Jake Gyllenhall and Condé Nast are producing the movie “Gilded Rage” based on a series of Vanity Fair articles about the murder.