‘You took them,’ man says to killer who suffocated his mother, sisters with bag

Michael Padrino Jr. recalled how one day he prepared a prepackaged Lunchables meal, but his mother walked in, tossed it to the side and made him a plate of spaghetti.

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At the time, Padrino didn’t think much of it, but he said it’s now a memory he clings onto. He also remembers his sister Julia being smart and making sure “everyone else knew she was smart,” and his sister Daniela being cute and having chubby cheeks.

The three of them, he said, would play with Nerf guns and Barbies. But like with all siblings, the girls sometimes set their sights on annoying Padrino, whose nickname is “Mikey.”

“I never thought I would miss that. I never thought I would miss them annoying me,” Padrino said as his voice shook. “I never thought I would give up anything in the world to see them one more time.”

Padrino delivered his victim-impact statement Tuesday afternoon in the sentencing trial of Alberto Sierra, 42. Sierra admitted to suffocating his estranged wife, Gladys Machado, 29, and her daughters Julia, 6, and Daniela, 3, with a plastic bag on Nov. 10, 2012. Their bodies were found inside a closet at the Flagami home they once shared three days after they were killed.

The fate of Sierra is in the hands of 12 jurors who are tasked with deciding whether Sierra, who pleaded guilty to the murders, should be condemned to death or sentenced to life in prison. Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Marisa Tinkler Mendez is presiding. Prosecutors rested their case after Padrino’s statement.

Sniffling, Padrino said his sisters were supposed to get older, make friends, fall in love and create their own memories. And Machado, their mother, was supposed to be around to witness it.

“We were supposed to have more time together. More birthdays, more holidays, more days where nothing important …happened, arguing over dumb things, sitting around and doing nothing,” he said.

Padrino said he wished he had more memories with his mother and sisters — and that he wouldn’t be sitting in a courtroom trying to remember everything he could because he didn’t get enough time with them.

“They were going to be amazing people, and I believe that,” he said. “They had so much life ahead of them. They could’ve done anything. Maybe they would’ve changed the world, and maybe they would’ve just lived normal lives and been happy, but we’ll never find out now.”

If he could, Padrino said he’d thank his mother for everything she did for them. He said he’d tell Julia that he remembers how smart she was and Daniela that he still remembers her exactly as she was.

Padrino then turned to Sierra. Breathing heavily and shaking, he said: “You took them. You know you did.” Prosecutors rushed over to Padrino as he began to hyperventilate and put his head down on the witness stand. They consoled him, and the judge sent the jury out of the courtroom.

Padrino’s adoptive mother, Christina Padrino, who is also his biological aunt, escorted him out of the courtroom. Padrino glared at Sierra, who was sitting at the defense table, until he walked out of the room.

Numerous jurors teared up as several loved ones of Machado, Julia and Daniela read their statements. Sierra put his head down throughout the statements but appeared to wipe under his eyes as Padrino spoke.

‘In my mind constantly’

Michael Padrino Sr., the father of Julia and Daniela, said his daughters no longer have voices in the world. In the almost 14 years since they were killed, he has carried a pain no other parent should have to bear.

“Their lives, their childhoods, their innocence, their chance to grow, every year they were supposed to live were taken from them,” the father said.

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He recalled Julia being smart, sweet and loving. He remembered how she always smiled when she saw those she loved. Daniela, he said, was happy, playful and full of life and energy. He remembered the way she puckered her lips when she would give him a kiss and a hug.

“I picture them in my mind constantly,” Padrino Sr. said. “For a moment, I feel close to them until the sharp pain of reality bring it back to the unbearable truth that they’re gone.”

He said his daughters were more than names in a criminal case and deserved to live a long life.

“They will always live in my heart,” he said. “This is a crime to not only take three lives, it shattered the lives of those left behind.”

Channon Castro, Machado’s best friend, said Machado was a hardworking mother to her daughters, nicknamed Julie and Danielita, and son.

“Gladys was an amazing mother. Her children were her world,” Castro said in between tears. “Anyone that knew Gladys knew how much her children meant to her.”

Machado loved to dance, made people around her feel alive and gave so much of herself to the people she loved, Castro said.

“When I think of Gladys, I don’t want to remember only how her life ended,” Castro said. “I want people to remember the woman she was: the mother who loved her children, the friend who was always full of life, the hardworking woman that never gave up and the person that could smile without a care in the world.”

She added that the pain of losing Machado, Julia and Daniela has been immeasurable for her and their family members.

“Gladys deserved to grow old with her children,” Castro said. “Julia and Danielita deserved a chance to grow, experience life and create their own futures. Mikey deserved to have his mother and sisters beside him.”

Christina Padrino recounted how Machado was caring and loving person who always wanted her children around the family. She showed the jury a collage of photos she gathered from her home of Machado, Julia and Daniela over the years.

Julia, who Padrino described as a “cute, smart and sassy girly girl,” was born premature and “defied the odds to survive.” The last time the family saw Julia, she had asked her grandmother to braid her hair so she could wear the hairstyle to school.

Daniela, Padrino said, was the baby of the family. She recalled how the last time they saw her, Daniela asked Padrino to carry her to the car while rocking her like a baby, prompting everyone to laugh.

“These sweet, happy moments are memories of love and family that we will cherish forever.”

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This story was originally published October 6, 2026 at 6:32 PM.