HOUSTON — A 22-year-old man was sentenced to life in prison for killing five people in three different shootings about five years ago.
Christian Ivan Cavazos' deadly crime spree began on Sept. 6, 2019, when he opened fire on a group of young men in a different car. The driver, who was wounded in the shooting, pulled the car over in the Jersey Village area. Cavazos got out of the car he was in, approached the car he had fired shots into, and shot and killed 19-year-old Ryan McGowan, who was in the backseat.
"So many people, so many families will never have peace because of the indiscriminate violence this man inflicted on our community," Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg said. "We swore an oath to see that justice is done, and in this case, justice demanded that this man be sentenced to life in prison."
On Sept. 25, 2019, Cavazos and some other men were driving around when they started following a purple Dodge Charger they thought belonged to a rival gang member. They followed the car to a home in northwest Houston.
In a case of mistaken identity, Ramiro Reyes, 65, and his wife, Rosalva Reyes, 63, were shot and killed by Cavazos as they got out of their car in front of their house. As it turned out, the Reyeses were leaving an area hospital where Rosalva's mother had just died.
About three months later, on Dec. 27, 2019, Cavazos was again a passenger in a car when he opened fire on a group of people who were recording a music video in north Harris County.
Videographer Gonzalo Andrew Gonzalez, 22, and Jonathan Jimenez, 20, were killed in the shooting, and seven other people were injured.
Cavazos pleaded guilty to three murder charges and a judge determined his punishment of life in prison.
"Christian Cavazos is a dangerous man who got what he earned, he got what he deserved when he was sentenced to life," Assistant District Attorney Napoleon Stewart said. "Anybody who was unfortunate enough to cross his path got hit by bullets, and many of them died. He created a lot of innocent victims, and we’re glad we were able to get justice for the victims and their families."
The courtroom was packed with family and friends of the victims on Friday during sentencing. After the judge read Cavazos' sentence, four people gave victim impact statements.
Even though the victims weren't connected, a lot of people in court wore buttons showing them together.
