Salinas man sentenced to 55 years to life in 2024 fatal shooting in Downtown Salinas
SALINAS, Calif. (KION-TV) - 40-year-old Mario Garcia was sentenced to 55 years to life plus an additional 32 months for the fatal shooting outside of Jaime's Lounge in April 2024.
According to the Monterey County District Attorney's Office, Garcia was convicted of second-degree murder in the death of Gabriel Gutierrez on April 5, 2024.
Garcia had left for Mexico following the shooting, but was arrested there and extradited to the U.S. to face murder charges.
An investigation revealed that the motivation for the shooting was due to an earlier confrontation at another bar 30 minutes beforehand. Yet, Gutierrez was not involved in that confrontation.
Man convicted of second-degree murder in fatal 2024 Downtown Salinas shooting
SALINAS, Calif. (KION-TV) - 40-year-old Mario Thomas Garcia has been convicted of second-degree murder in a fatal shooting outside of Jaime's Lounge in April of 2024.
According to the Monterey County District Attorney's office, Garcia was found guilty of second-degree murder in the shooting death of Gabriel Gutierrez.
On April 5, 2024, around 11:37 p.m., Salinas Police officers responded to an incident in front of Jaime's Lounge. Once on scene, they found Gutierrez with a gunshot wound in his abdomen. Gutierrez would later die from his injuries.
While no witnesses were present at the scene, surveillance footage from Jaime's Lounge and nearby businesses showed what happened before the death of Gutierrez and showed Garcia being responsible.
Garcia had left the country after the shooting. Later, Garcia was arrested in Mexico and extradited to the United States to face murder charges.
While investigating the case, it was revealed that the motive leading to the shooting stemmed from another incident at a different bar. Yet, Gutierrez was not involved in that incident.
Garcia is also being convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 20, where he faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.
