Man gets life prison sentence for Silver Lake Trader Joe's employee shooting death

The man who was found responsible for the Silver Lake shooting death of a 27-year-old Trader Joe's assistant manager was sentenced to more than 200 years to life in prison.

Gene Evin Atkins, 36, was convicted of 41 counts, including second-degree murder, assault with a semi-automatic firearm on a peace officer, attempted carjacking, and mayhem for the July, 2018 crime spree.

 Atkins set off a chain of events that led to the death of Melyda "Mely" Maricela Corado. Though he was not the person who fatally shot Corado, he was charged with her killing under the theory that Corado's death was the result of his actions.

Albert Corado, Mely's father, spoke outside the courthouse following sentencing on Wednesday.

"The result doesn't matter. My daughter is still not here," Corado said.  "He took an angel … My entire family, he changed us forever."

Prosecutors say Atkins first shot his 76-year-old grandmother and 17-year-old girlfriend in South Los Angeles before taking his grandmother's vehicle and leading police on a wild chase, ending at the Trader Joe's store as he dashed inside, firing at police.

Police returned fire and struck and killed Corado. Atkins ultimately surrendered to police after a four-hour standoff inside the store where he held employees and customers hostage.

Earlier this year, a jury convicted Atkins of 40 counts, including 24 counts of false imprisonment of a hostage involving Trader Joe's employees and customers, three counts of attempted murder and four counts of assault with a firearm on an officer.

He was acquitted of the most serious charge of first-degree murder, while the jury deadlocked on the second-degree murder charge involving the death of Corado, resulting in a retrial.

The second jury found him guilty of second-degree murder and found true allegations that he personally used and discharged a firearm during the crime.