Former Gang Leader Sought in Slaying
The FBI and Los Angeles Police Department said Friday that they were searching for a former gang leader from East Los Angeles who had tried to turn his life around but is now wanted for allegedly shooting one man to death and trying to kill another.
Robert Valenzuela Leon, also known as “Crazy Ace,” is sought on murder charges for allegedly killing Steven Sanchez, 31, during a fight among a large group of men outside a downtown Los Angeles restaurant March 31.
Leon, 31, is also suspected of shooting at a security guard at the restaurant minutes later, before fleeing with his sister to Kansas City, Mo., authorities said. They warned that he is considered armed and “extremely dangerous.”
Federal authorities have filed unlawful-flight charges against Leon.
After being released from prison in 1996, Leon was profiled in the local media--including the Los Angeles Times Magazine--for exemplifying the efforts of some former gang members to avoid returning to lives of crime.
Leon joined an innovative program called Streetlights, which puts at-risk young men and women through rigorous training to prepare them for jobs as Hollywood production assistants.
Authorities said Friday that Leon has been employed in recent years as a production assistant for motion pictures and television commercials.
Anyone with information about Leon is asked to contact the FBI at (310) 477-6565 or the LAPD at (213) 485-3261.
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