BY VINAYA SAKSENA

PROVIDENCE — A former Pawtucket resident has been sentenced to life in prison after admitting to starting a fire that claimed the life of a 95-year-old man two years ago in a mistaken act of drug-fueled revenge.

Cody Zab, a 23-year-old Providence resident who grew up in Pawtucket, pled guilty on Wednesday to one count each of first-degree murder, first-degree arson and fourth-degree arson, according to the office of Attorney General Patrick Lynch. Associate Justice Francis J. Darigan Jr. sentenced Zab to life in prison, which is a mandatory sentence for first-degree murder. Zab, who will serve his time at the ACI, was also sentenced to three years of probation for the fourth-degree arson charge. Lynch’s office pointed out that Zab would not be sentenced to additional time on the first-degree arson charge he plead guilty to, as it had been incorporated into the murder charge.
“An innocent elderly man lost the opportunity to live his remaining years because of the heinous actions of a young man bent on scoring crack and exacting revenge when he didn’t make his score,” Lynch said in a statement. “This is a fitting and fair disposition to a case whose facts turn one’s stomach.”
According to information provided by Lynch’s office and previous Times reports, the incident for which Zab was on trial occurred on February 2, 2006. On that night, Zab and his stepfather were smoking crack cocaine together in the latter’s apartment. After running out of crack, they allegedly obtained money from a family member, and Zab went out to buy more. He allegedly gave $30 to a man identified as Chris Aubert, who allegedly took the money, and did not provide Zab with the desired drugs.
Feeling cheated, Zab then allegedly drove to the Meadow Street home of 95-year-old Nocenxo Vanti, a retired landscape business owner living by himself.
Lynch’s office said Zab mistakenly believed this to be the home of Aubert’s aunt, who actually lived in a nearby house and served as Vanti’s caretaker.
Zab allegedly set fire to a car on Vanti’s property, then opened a window and used a lighter to set fire to the house’s living room curtains while Vanti was asleep. He then allegedly returned to his stepfather’s home and told his wife that a house down the street was on fire. The two of them allegedly left for Ohio the following day.
Firefighters apparently found Vanti in his bed, having suffered burns on 10 to 15 percent of his body, mostly his hands, legs and face. He died four days later, with the cause of death being described as multi-system organ failure, attributed to smoke inhalation.
Lynch’s office said the case remained unsolved until July of 2006, when Zab’s wife walked into a police station in Garfield Heights, Ohio. She apparently provided police with a statement implicating her husband in the house fire and other crimes. As a result, Zab was arrested on a local warrant and a warrant from Rhode Island for receiving stolen goods. He was interviewed in Ohio by Pawtucket Police, and admitted to starting the fire, providing a statement that police said was consistent with evidence they had found.
Zab waived extradition and had been held at the ACI since being returned to Rhode Island in July of 2006. As part of a plea agreement, the charge of receiving stolen goods was dropped. According to Lynch’s office, Zab apologized to Andrew Vanti, nephew of Nocenxo Vanti, during his court appearance on Wednesday.