Two gang members were convicted on Wednesday, July 22 of the killing of a drug dealer who was gunned down in the front yard of his Placentia home during a robbery gone wrong apparently ordered by Mexican Mafia leaders.
Jurors found Ysrael Jacob Cordova, 41, and Ricardo Valenzuela, 44, each guilty of murder in aid of racketeering activity for the January 2017 slaying of 35-year-old Robert Rios, following a nearly two week trial at the federal courthouse in Santa Ana. The trial was part of a larger, ongoing racketeering case targeting the Orange County faction of the powerful, prison-based Mexican Mafia.
The conviction in federal court comes several years after a local case related to the same killing but handled by Orange County prosecutors was tossed out of state court after a judge determined that a sheriff’s deputy who served as a gang expert was dishonest in testimony.
Mexican Mafia leaders, from behind bars, exert widespread control over street gang members, controlling the flow and sales of narcotics on local streets and in prisons and jails. Those who oppose the Mexican Mafia, or fail to follow the edicts of the gang’s leaders, are often targeted for beatings or even death.
By allegedly failing to pay “taxes” to the Mexican Mafia for money he earned selling drugs in a gang-controlled neighborhood, Rios became a target, federal prosecutors told jurors during the trial.
Cordova — the alleged shooter — and Valenzuela were part of a crew tasked by Gregory Munoz — an alleged Mexican Mafia shot caller — to collect money from Rios, prosecutors said.
The alleged leader of the Orange County faction of the Mexican Mafia — Johnny Martinez — gave Munoz and the crew the green light to confront Rios, prosecutors say. Munoz and Martinez were both in custody at the time at separate state prisons, but used contraband cell phones to communicate.
Munoz allegedly used his “errand runner,” Charles Coghill, to assemble the crew and to get them guns, masks, zip ties and tape. Coghill also served as a getaway driver, prosecutors said. Rounding out the crew along with Cordova and Valenzuela was Augustine Velazquez.
Rios confronted Cordova, Valenzuela and Velazquez outside his home, while Coghill waited in a car nearby. Rios was shot and killed. Velazquez was shot in the leg but survived.
Coghill — the alleged “errand runner” and driver — cooperated with prosecutors in the case against Cordova and Valenzuela. Omar Mejia, another former Mexican Mafia shot caller who shared a prison cell with Munoz at the time of the Rios killing, also cooperated with the government, saying he overheard details of the plot that ended with Rios’ death.
Velazquez was the only alleged participant in the fatal confrontation to be tried and convicted in state court, but his case was overturned after an appellate court found his rights had been violated. He is awaiting a new trial.
Munoz, the alleged shot caller said to have set up the confrontation, had a falling out with Martinez, the alleged leader of the Orange County faction of the Mexican Mafia. Munoz was attacked twice in prison, stabbed and then shot in the street after his release. He survived and is awaiting trial.
Attorneys for Cordova and Valenzuela denied that the Rios attempted robbery turned killing was tied to the Mexican Mafia. Munoz orchestrated the attempted robbery as a “side job” for his own profit, the defense attorneys argued. When other Mexican Mafia leaders learned of the plot and the killing, they issued a “kill order” against Munoz, leading to the violent attacks against him, the defense attorneys added.
Authorities say the Rios slaying was part of a wave of bloodshed ultimately orchestrated by Martinez as he tried to fill the void created with the death behind bars of longtime gang chieftain Peter Ojeda, who had ruled over the Orange County faction of the Mexican Mafia for decades despite a pair of racketeering convictions of his own.
Martinez was not a defendant in the recent trial.
But, as the accused head of the local Mexican Mafia faction, a larger racketeering indictment alleges that Martinez shares responsibilities for the crimes committed by his alleged subordinates, including Munoz, Cordova and Valenzuela. If proven by prosecutors, that would lead to a lengthy prison sentence for Martinez.
Other lower-level gang members with Mexican Mafia ties already have been convicted as part of the larger, ongoing racketeering case, including three men found guilty of a 2017 killing in Orange.
Seven defendants, including Martinez and Munoz, are still awaiting trial in the larger racketeering case. So far, 15 people have been convicted, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
“We will never tolerate senseless acts of gang violence on the streets, especially those ordered by convicted felons behind bars,” First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said in a written statement. “We will vigorously prosecute gang violence to keep our community safe and to provide justice for the victims.”
Cordova and Valenzuela will return to court for sentencing on Oct. 22. They face life sentences in federal prison.