Bell Man Admits Role in Tavern Killings

A Bell man pleaded guilty last week to helping two brothers carry out a shooting in a Glendale tavern in which two men were killed and a third wounded.

Constancio Villagrana, 25, pleaded guilty Friday to being an accessory after the fact for his role in a Nov. 24 shooting at the Rustic Inn bar on San Fernando Road.

Villagrana will be sentenced April 20 in Pasadena Superior Court. He could spend up to three years in prison.

Villagrana initially faced one count of conspiracy to attempt murder, which carries a maximum sentence of 25 years to life in prison.

Prosecutors contend that Villagrana, Rodolfo Marquez, 21, and Manuel Marquez, 25, left the Rustic Inn after being involved in a fistfight, then returned about half an hour later to retaliate. They allege that Rodolfo Marquez, accompanied by Villagrana and armed with a gun that Manuel Marquez had given him, entered the bar and began shooting, while Manuel Marquez waited in a getaway truck outside.

Oscar Lemus, 34, of Los Angeles and Jose Davila, 33, of Glendale were killed and Javier Maldonado, 48, of Los Angeles was wounded.

The Marquez brothers, of Atwater, each are charged with two counts of murder, one count of attempted murder and one count of conspiracy to attempt murder. Their pretrial hearing has been scheduled for April 20 in Pasadena Superior Court.