Gang Member Pleads Guilty to Kidnaping
A gang member pleaded guilty to charges of kidnaping and accepting stolen property for his part in a case involving a Simi Valley man who was shot to death.
Demetrius Walker, 20, of Los Angeles entered his plea in San Fernando Superior Court and will be sentenced to five years in state prison on May 6, Deputy Dist. Atty. Edward Nison said.
Walker and Antuan Williams, 22, kidnaped Michael D. Lee, 19, last February as he was making a phone call at the corner of Glenoaks and Van Nuys boulevards, Nison said.
Witnesses said a man forced Lee into his car at gunpoint while another car followed behind.
Lee was later found shot to death in an alley between 105th and 106th streets near Broadway in South Los Angeles.
“Williams was identified as the shooter,” Nison said. Witnesses later saw several men stripping Lee’s red 1988 Chevrolet Beretta at another location. “Walker was observed taking part in the stripping of the car,” Nison said.
Nison said that although Walker and Williams are gang members, the killing did not appear to be gang-related.
Walker will be sentenced May 6. Williams faces a charge of murder and robbery and is scheduled to appear in court again June 21.
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