Gang Leader Gets 16 to Life in Slaying

After an emotional court hearing, a judge handed down the maximum term Thursday to an Oxnard gang leader convicted of second-degree murder last month.

Mario Desequera was sentenced to 16 years to life in prison for ordering the Jan. 19, 1997, slaying of Jose Basilan.

Desequera, 26, admitted to police that he told fellow gang member George Doctolero to shoot Basilan, 24, outside John’s Rendezvous Restaurant on Saviers Road in Oxnard.

The men had been arguing with a friend of Basilan’s before Doctolero, then 19, pulled out a gun and fired.

Doctolero fled to the Philippines after the shooting and was returned to the United States in October under a new extradition treaty. He pleaded guilty to murder charges last month.

On Thursday, Basilan’s mother urged the judge to impose the most severe sentence possible against Desequera and asked her son’s killer if he comprehended his actions.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Ron Bamieh said it was an emotional scene as relatives of both the victim and the convicted murderer packed the courtroom.

Doctolero is scheduled to be sentenced Aug. 3. He faces a maximum term of 25 years to life in prison.