Man sentenced to 66 years for killing 2 Chicago men, wounding teen in Mexico
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A man has been sentenced to more than 66 years in prison in Mexico for a shooting that left a 14-year-old Chicago boy in a coma, and killed his father, uncle, and a third man last month in Durango two days after Christmas.
The U.S. State Department has warned against travel in the Durango area of Mexico, due to a surge in gang-related crime.
Authorities in Mexico said 38-year-old Vicente Peña Jr.; his brother, 44-year-old Antonio Fernández; and a third man, 22-year-old Jorge Eduardo Vargas Aguirre were killed in the shooting on Dec. 27, on a highway in Durango. Peña's 14-year-old son also was wounded in the shooting, and was left in critical condition in a coma.
On Jan. 4, Iram Uranga Armendáriz was arrested for the shooting and "agreed to an abbreviated procedure," which resulted in a sentence of 66 years 7 months and 9 days in prison, according to the Attorney General of the State of Durango. He also was ordered to pay a fine of approximately $25,000 and damages of approximately $182,000.
Authorities said around 9 p.m. on Dec. 27, Armendáriz went to a home in the town of Cienega De San José with his partner for a family celebration, where Fernández and Peña also were present.
After getting out of his car, Armendáriz spoke to the two men about a $250,000 debt they owed him after giving them an advance on the purchase of a piece of land in the mountains of the nearby Altares community, which he no longer wanted to buy.
Fernández, Peña, and Aguirre, and Peña's son then followed Armendáriz and his partner to a highway junction near the town of Las Palmas, where Fernández got out of their car around 10 p.m., and began arguing with Armendáriz, who pulled out a 9mm handgun and shot him several times in the head.
Authorities said Armendáriz then shot Peña multiple times in the head, prompting Aguirre and Peña's son to run away.
Armendáriz chased them down and shot both of them several times. Once they were on the ground, he shot both of them in the head and fled the scene.
Peña, Fernández, and Aguirre all died of their injuries. Peña's son was critically wounded. According to published reports, he was later flown back to the U.S. to be treated at a hospital in Houston.
An update on the boy's condition was not available Saturday night.
