Four California residents have received significant sentences for their roles in a South Texas murder-for-hire scheme, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.
Viola Elizabeth Garcia, 53, was convicted after a four-day trial in November 2022, and her son, Christopher Andrade, 33, was convicted in July 2023. Two others, Noah Solis, 25, and Ronaldo Gallegos, 25, had previously pleaded guilty. Diego Morales, 38, was incarcerated at the time but also pleaded guilty to his role in the crime prior to trial. All four are from Oxnard, California.
Chief U.S. District Judge Randy Crane has now ordered Garcia, Andrade, and Gallegos to each serve 120 months in federal prison, while Morales received a 60-month term of imprisonment. All sentences will be immediately followed by three years of supervised release. Solis will be sentenced at a later date.
"The Mexican Mafia, a deadly criminal enterprise that traffics in fear and terror, imported a mother and son duo – Garcia and Andrade – from California to murder a local man for $20,000," said Hamdani. "Garcia and Andrade thought the scheme would raise their family’s fortunes, but thanks to the work of law enforcement, there won’t be any family reunions for years to come."
According to the investigation, Mexican Mafia gang members arranged for the murder of a male residing in Mission in 2018. Morales, who was in California State prison serving a sentence for attempted murder, recruited others to commit the murder via a contraband cell phone in his possession. Andrade, a Colonia Chiques gang member, recruited and conspired with the others, including his mother – Garcia – to execute the murder in exchange for $20,000.
The jury heard that Garcia and co-conspirators attempted to forcibly enter the victim’s residence near Mission on Aug. 30, 2018. The murder attempt was unsuccessful, and they then tried to flee from the scene. Garcia led responding law enforcement officers on a high-speed chase until she crashed the vehicle.
The FBI conducted the investigation with the assistance of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and police departments in Mission and Oxnard, California. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Roberto Lopez Jr., Cahal P. McColgan, and Sarina S. DiPiazza prosecuted the case.
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Key Facts
- State: Texas
- Category: Organized Crime|Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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