Gang Member Sentenced to 5 Life Terms in Fatal Shooting

A gang member convicted of murder in a September drive-by shooting at a Reseda Popeye’s Chicken & Biscuits restaurant was sentenced Friday to five consecutive life prison terms.

Ivan Roldan, 21, was found guilty March 25 on six charges, including murder.

Roldan was on a “one-man crime spree” when he killed 16-year-old Samuel Barrios and injured three others as he fired into the restaurant, Deputy Dist. Atty. Laura Baird said. Two hours earlier, Roldan had injured another man in a drive-by shooting near the restaurant, Baird said.

Roldan was a member of the Woodley Bad Boys gang, Los Angeles Police Det. Rick Swanston said. Barrios was not a gang member, Baird said.

Superior Court Judge Sandy Kriegler sentenced Roldan to 25 years to life in prison for murder, and an additional four consecutive life sentences for the attempted murder charges.

The sentences must be served consecutively, which means Roldan will not be eligible for parole until he is in his 80s, Baird said. Other sentences connected to the use of a firearm and the assault charge total 51 additional years, she said.

“The judge gave him the maximum based on a high degree of viciousness in these acts,” Baird said.

Kriegler dismissed charges March 17 against Roldan’s alleged accomplice, 22-year-old Daniel Mejia of Encino, because of insufficient evidence.