Carpinteria gang members Angel Varela, 31, and Oscar Trujillo-Gutierrez, 29, who were convicted of first-degree murder in the shooting deaths of two Santa Barbara teenagers, were both sentenced Thursday to lifetime prison terms without the possibility of parole.
The 2021 shooting took place at the intersection of Liberty and South Soledad streets on Santa Barbara’s lower Eastside, with Varela, Trujillo-Gutierrez, and a juvenile spraying bullets from assault-style rifles at a group of people who had gathered outside during a Sunday night party.
Angel Castillo, 17, and Omar Montiel-Hernandez, 18, were fatally struck, and two others were seriously wounded. Castillo was shot in the back as he fled. No one returned fire.
The juvenile, whose identity has not been released, was prosecuted in Santa Barbara County Juvenile Court. He was convicted on two counts of premeditated and deliberate first-degree murder and two counts of attempted murder. His sentence is pending…