SUNLAND : Woman Convicted in Boyfriend’s Slaying

A Sunland woman was convicted Tuesday of second-degree murder for shooting her boyfriend on Christmas morning in 1991 and attempting to make the slaying look like a suicide by placing the victim’s own gun in his left hand.

However, Sergio Ruiz, 22, of Sun Valley was right-handed, a detail that led to the conviction of Anna Gilinets, 19.

The couple fought on Christmas Eve, and Ruiz had apparently refused to pay for damage to Gilinets’ car incurred when she attempted to block the driveway of his residence to prevent him from attending a party, said Deputy Dist. Atty. David Mintz.

Gilinets also told police that she was upset because Ruiz failed to buy her a Christmas present, even though he had borrowed money from her to buy himself a stereo amplifier, according to evidence presented to the jury.

Ruiz was shot by Gilinets at 7 a.m. Christmas morning, according to witnesses who said they heard the woman yelling before the gun went off.

The fatal bullet entered the left side of Ruiz’s head, and Gilinets placed the murder weapon--Ruiz’s own .357 Magnum--into his left hand. When investigators determined that Ruiz was right-handed, they confronted Gilinets, who gave several conflicting versions of what occurred that morning.

Gilinets is scheduled to be sentenced by Superior Court Judge John Fisher on June 22. She faces a maximum sentence of 20 years to life in state prison.