BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) — Jesse Mata was in a generous mood when he arrived at a Panama Lane convenience store on Aug. 29, 2021.
He bought a beer for a man he found wandering the parking lot; his 12-year-old daughter gave the man some crackers.
2 ordered to trial in double homicide at Delano gas station
As he chatted outside the El Milagro Market with the man, later identified as Miguel Cervantes, Mata allegedly made a comment about a passing car. That’s when Cervantes, upset over the remark, stabbed him in the neck, according to prosecutors.
Mata’s daughter stopped him from continuing the attack, and Cervantes ran away.
Six days later, Mata died at Kern Medical.
On Wednesday, a jury found Cervantes guilty of second-degree murder. He faces up to 15 years to life in prison, plus one year at his sentencing next month, prosecutors said.
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“It is heartbreaking that a child witnessed the horrifying violence against her father,” District Attorney Cynthia Zimmer said in a release. “While we can’t turn back time or erase the trauma, we will ensure that justice is served.”