Man Pleads Guilty in Drive-by Shooting in Anaheim

Man in handcuffs

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FULLERTON (CNS) - A 21-year-old man pleaded guilty and was immediately sentenced to 11 years in prison for his part in a drive-by shooting at an Anaheim strip club on Halloween that injured four people.

Juan Jose Acosta-Soto pleaded guilty to four counts each of attempted murder and assault with a machine gun as well as a count of discharge of a gun at an inhabited dwelling, all felonies, and admitted sentencing enhancements for furnishing a firearm, according to court records.

Two other co-defendants are awaiting trial.

The suspects, who were kicked out of the Sahara Theatre, at 1210 S. State College Blvd., for refusing to wear masks got into a red Toyota Camry and opened fire on the strip club with an AK-47-style rifle about 1:30 a.m. Oct. 31, 2020, according to Anaheim Police Department Sgt. Shane Carringer.

Four victims, a mix of patrons and employees, were injured in the shooting, Carringer said. The injuries ranged from minor to moderate.

The co-defendants are Edgar Nava-Ayala, 35, and Daniel Ocampo Nava, 23, both of Anaheim, Carringer said. Acosta-Soto was driving the Camry during the shooting, Carringer said.

Police recovered the gun used in the shooting as the suspects were arrested, Carringer said.

Nava-Ayala is charged with four counts of attempted murder, four counts of assault with an assault weapon and a count of shooting into an occupied building. He also faces sentencing enhancements for the discharge of a weapon and causing great bodily injury.

Ocampo Nava is charged with four counts of assault with an assault weapon and one count of shooting into an occupied building.


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