Mariano Labra Ramos, a 36-year-old resident of Santa Ana, California, tragically lost his life on December 1, 2017. Ramos was fatally shot near his home on the 1900 block of W. Myrtle Street. The incident occurred when Alexis Ascencion, a gang member, mistakenly identified Ramos as a member of a rival gang. Ascencion, along with fellow gang member Felix Martinez Vargas and two unidentified teenagers, drove into what they believed to be rival gang territory.
Upon spotting Ramos and another man standing in a walkway, Ascencion exited the vehicle and opened fire, hitting Ramos multiple times in the leg. Ramos was transported to a local trauma center but succumbed to his injuries due to severe blood loss from a severed artery.
The investigation revealed that Ramos had no gang affiliations and was an innocent bystander. The day following the shooting, police arrested Ascencion, Vargas, and the two teenagers involved in the incident. Ascencion, who was 18 at the time, was later convicted of first-degree murder with enhancements for using a firearm and committing the crime for the benefit of a gang. His trial began on February 1, 2024, and he was found guilty two weeks later. Ascencion remains in custody and is expected to be sentenced on April 5, 2024.
Felix Martinez Vargas, identified as the driver of the getaway car, pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter in September 2022. He was sentenced to 13 years in prison. One of the two teenagers involved was also convicted of attempted murder. The case highlighted the senseless nature of gang violence, with the judge noting that the attack was a "senseless act of violence" intended to demonstrate the strength of Ascencion's gang. Ramos, who was simply going out to get salt for his wife, who is blind, was an innocent victim caught in the crossfire of gang rivalries.
