Men sentenced to life in prison for ’07 murder

Two gang members were sentenced to serve life in prison Friday for the 2007 murder of a Woodbridge man.

Rafael Parada-Mendoza and Gabriel Hosman Perez-Amaya, both 22, were convicted in June of shooting 19-year-old Christian Argueta of Woodbridge in the Springfield Mall parking lot near the Cerro Grande restaurant Dec. 2, 2007.

Prosecutors said Parada-Mendoza and Perez-Amaya were illegal immigrants from El Salvador and members of the criminal street gang Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13.

Friday, a judge at U.S. District Court in Alexandria sentenced them both to life in prison.

According to court documents, Parada-Mendoza and Perez-Amaya approached Argueta and his friend, both members of the rival gang Southside Locos, in the mall parking lot.

They flashed gang signs, and when Argueta and his friend stepped out of their car, Parada-Mendoza drew a handgun and shot and killed Argueta. His friend was able to get away uninjured.

Prosecutors said that Parada-Mendoza and Perez-Amaya killed Argueta to increase their position in MS-13.

According to evidence presented at their trial, they recounted killing Argueta at a gang meeting hours after the shooting.

Staff writer Amanda Stewart can be reached at 703-878-8014.