On January 25, 2024, an Orange County jury convicted 26-year-old Marcus Anthony Erez of Costa Mesa of murder in the fatal shooting of 6-year-old Aiden Leos. This reportedly happened during a road rage incident on May 21, 2021, at approximately 8 a.m. local time, when Liu was headed to kindergarten at Calvary Chapel in Yorba Linda, according to a press release from the Orange County District Attorney's Office.
The 6-year-old was sitting in the back seat of his mother's car, which was heading north on Interstate 55 near Chapman Street.
Marcus Anthony Erez was found guilty by a jury of one felony count of shooting into an occupied vehicle, one felony count of second-degree murder, and two felony enhanced charges of personal discharge of a firearm causing great bodily harm, the Orange County District Attorney's Office said. Injury and death, according to ABC News.
Marcus Anthony Erez reportedly fired a Glock pistol into Aiden Leos' mother's car
The press release from the Orange County District Attorney's Office stated that Aiden Leos' mother testified during the trial that on May 21, 2021, she flipped off the driver of a Volkswagen Sportswagen after they cut her off.
After Aiden's mother did this, Marcus Anthony Erez fired a Glock pistol at her car in retaliation, NBC News reported.
In her testimony in January 2024, Aiden's mother, Joanna Cloonan, recalled her son's final moments. According to KABC-TV, Joanna said:
“I heard a noise that sounded like a big rock hitting the car. And I heard my son say, ‘Ah.’ I looked behind me and his head was hanging off.”
According to a press release from the Orange County District Attorney's Office, the 6-year-old's mother stopped the car on the side of the highway, took Aiden out of the car seat, and called 911. The child was taken to Children's Hospital. from CHOC in Orange County, where he was later pronounced dead.
KABC-TV reported that Joanna Cloonan said:
“I immediately pulled over to the side of the highway. I tried to get him out of his car seat. I noticed he was dying very quickly. I put my hand on his stomach. I held him close to my body to try to save him.” “It saved his life and I called 911.”
The driver of the Volkswagen Sportswagen was identified as 26-year-old Wayne Li, of Costa Mesa, who is Marcus Anthony Erez's girlfriend. She was charged with one misdemeanor count of possession of a concealed firearm in a vehicle and one felony count of after the fact, according to CNN.
According to a press release from the Orange County District Attorney's Office, the California Highway Patrol has initiated a massive manhunt for the shooter throughout Southern California and issued a public appeal for leads about the suspects' white 2018/2019 Volkswagen Sports Wagon.
On June 6, 2021, the California Highway Patrol arrested the couple.
Marcus Anthony Erez could be sentenced to 40 years to life in state prison
ABC 7 reported that after Marcus Anthony Erez's conviction, in a news conference outside the courthouse, Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer stated that he informed Aiden Leos' mother, Joanna Cloonan, of the verdict, and she responded via text message. Attorney General Spitzer said:
She wrote “guilty of murder” and said, “Good, thank you Todd.”
Marcos' sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 12, 2024, and according to the district attorney's office, he could face up to 40 years to life in state prison.
“Although we will never know what Aiden would have become, we know that the pursuit of justice is not over until his killer is caught and this child killer is prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” Spitzer said.
Marcus Anthony Erez's girlfriend, Wayne Li, is out of custody under GPS monitoring after posting $100,000 bail in July 2021. She is currently awaiting trial, and if convicted on all charges, could receive a maximum sentence of three years in prison . State prison and one year in Orange County Jail.
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