Two California men could face life in prison after shooting into a strip club they got booted from for not wearing masks.
A Halloween trip to the Sahara Theatre, a strip club in Anaheim four miles east of Disneyland, was cut short after Edgar Nava-Ayala, Daniel Ocampo and Juan Acosta-Soto were kicked out by security guards for not complying with the venue’s mask requirements.
They returned to the Sahara in a red Toyota Camry. With an AK-47 in tow, Nava-Ayala allegedly fired around 15 rounds into the club “indiscriminately,” according to statements from the Orange County District Attorney’s Office and the Anaheim Police Department.
“The suspects were kicked out for refusing to wear masks,” Sgt. Shane Carringer of the Anaheim Police Department told USA TODAY. “They returned and fired on the club in retaliation of being kicked out.”
Contrary to some reports, Carringer said, they did not attack the strip club specifically for their mask regulations.
At least four people were injured, and one had to undergo surgery because of bullet wounds in the upper body, according to the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.
“It is nothing short of a miracle that no one was killed,” Carringer told the Washington Post.
Nava-Ayala, 34, and Ocampo, 22, were both charged with attempted murder and assault, among other felony charges, on Monday after an arrest made last week led to the discovery of the AK-47 used in the attacks. Both face life sentences if convicted of all charges.
Acosta-Soto, 20, faces a maximum of 17 years with a felony assault charge.
All three are being held at the Orange County Jail with $5 million bail.
Follow Joshua Bote on Twitter: @joshua_bote.
2020-12-22 12:24:01