SANTA MARIA A Guadalupe gang member faces life in prison for his role in an 11-year-old murder.
On Friday Leonel Adrian Torres, 36, was convicted by a Santa Maria jury of second-degree murder with a gang enhancement for the Aug. 16, 2008 murder of James Michael Christie.
Mr. Christie was stabbed to death outside Roy’s Liquor in Guadalupe.
Arturo Palomar and Jose Morales, Jr also participated in the attack. Mr. Palomar and Mr. Morales were convicted of Mr. Christie’s murder in 2010, but Mr. Torres fled to Mexico immediately after the slaying.
In 2016 Mr. Torres was apprehended and extradited back to the United States to stand trial.
