His life sentence came down Tuesday from U.S. District Judge Lee Yeakel, who called Onyeri’s actions “heinous” and worthy of the stiffest punishment available to the court.
In explaining his decision, Yeakel told a courtroom packed with Kocurek’s supporters that “an attack on a public official strikes at the heart of our constitutional government.”
Onyeri spent several weeks tracking Kocurek’s patterns before showing up outside her driveway at her West Austin home, walking up to her SUV and shooting four times at her as the judge and her family returned from a football game. Kocurek survived, but has required 30-plus surgeries to recover from wounds sustained in the attack.
At trial this spring, prosecutors successfully argued to a jury that Onyeri wanted Kocurek dead so she could not send him to prison on a probation violation and disrupt a criminal theft and fraud enterprise that he ran.
In explaining his decision, Yeakel told a courtroom packed with Kocurek’s supporters that “an attack on a public official strikes at the heart of our constitutional government.”
Onyeri spent several weeks tracking Kocurek’s patterns before showing up outside her driveway at her West Austin home, walking up to her SUV and shooting four times at her as the judge and her family returned from a football game. Kocurek survived, but has required 30-plus surgeries to recover from wounds sustained in the attack.
At trial this spring, prosecutors successfully argued to a jury that Onyeri wanted Kocurek dead so she could not send him to prison on a probation violation and disrupt a criminal theft and fraud enterprise that he ran.
Onyeri, 31, was convicted on all 17 counts he faced after many of his associates testified about the scheme, which included stealing unsuspecting customers’ bank account information and filing false tax returns with stolen Social Security numbers.
Yeakel ordered Onyeri to pay $178,371.44 in restitution to the banks he stole from. About 10 of his associates will be sentenced by the end of the year and will be ordered to help Onyeri pay the restitution.
Kocurek, who turned 54 Tuesday, has served in her judicial role since 1999. She addressed the media on the courthouse steps and thanked the community for its support. She noted that five jurors from the trial had returned to see Onyeri get sentenced.
“I’m thankful our community is safe from Mr. Onyeri and the city of Houston is safe,” she said. “This is bigger than me. This is about the rule of law.”
Onyeri’s lawyer, Victor Arana, said he will appeal the conviction and the sentence, arguing, among other things, that the federal statute does not clearly define the racketeering count for which Onyeri was convicted.
The precise sentence Yeakel imposed after calculating the punishment for each count was life in prison plus two years. In the event Onyeri gets released from prison, Yeakel ordered that he serve five years under court supervision and undergo gambling counseling.
Yeakel said he rejected testimony from Monday about two unrelated fatal shootings in Houston that prosecutors say Onyeri committed. The judge said the preponderance of evidence points to Onyeri as the killer, but added some of the people who assisted investigators with their statements might have been motivated by wanting better deals in their own cases.
There is no parole in the federal court system, meaning Onyeri will likely remain behind bars for the rest of his life.
“I think Mr. Onyeri deserves it,” prosecutor Gregg Sofer said. “The community deserves it. Judge Kocurek deserves it. There are other victims of the crime that have been mentioned in the course of the trial, and they deserve it also.”from statesman.com
Yeakel ordered Onyeri to pay $178,371.44 in restitution to the banks he stole from. About 10 of his associates will be sentenced by the end of the year and will be ordered to help Onyeri pay the restitution.
Kocurek, who turned 54 Tuesday, has served in her judicial role since 1999. She addressed the media on the courthouse steps and thanked the community for its support. She noted that five jurors from the trial had returned to see Onyeri get sentenced.
“I’m thankful our community is safe from Mr. Onyeri and the city of Houston is safe,” she said. “This is bigger than me. This is about the rule of law.”
Onyeri’s lawyer, Victor Arana, said he will appeal the conviction and the sentence, arguing, among other things, that the federal statute does not clearly define the racketeering count for which Onyeri was convicted.
The precise sentence Yeakel imposed after calculating the punishment for each count was life in prison plus two years. In the event Onyeri gets released from prison, Yeakel ordered that he serve five years under court supervision and undergo gambling counseling.
Yeakel said he rejected testimony from Monday about two unrelated fatal shootings in Houston that prosecutors say Onyeri committed. The judge said the preponderance of evidence points to Onyeri as the killer, but added some of the people who assisted investigators with their statements might have been motivated by wanting better deals in their own cases.
There is no parole in the federal court system, meaning Onyeri will likely remain behind bars for the rest of his life.
“I think Mr. Onyeri deserves it,” prosecutor Gregg Sofer said. “The community deserves it. Judge Kocurek deserves it. There are other victims of the crime that have been mentioned in the course of the trial, and they deserve it also.”from statesman.com
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