A man indicted for his role in a series of crimes in Santa Maria linked to the violent international criminal gang known as MS-13 has taken a plea deal giving him an 8-year prison sentence.
Rafael Lainez Castro, 33, pleaded no contest in Santa Barbara County Superior Court after months of negotiations between his attorney, Gary Dunlap, and the prosecution team, led by Ann Bramsen and Kelly Scott from the Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office.
The plea deal includes one count of criminal street gang conspiracy and a special allegation for offering to furnish a gun.
He was sentenced to six years in state prison plus waived his two years of credit for time served in Santa Barbara County Jail since his arrest in 2016, adding up to an eight-year sentence.
The charges stem from Operation Matador, undertaken in March 2016, and followed by the Santa Barbara County Criminal Grand Jury handing down indictments.
In one case, 12 men face 50 felony counts linked to 10 homicides and other crimes in the Santa Maria Valley. That case has yet to go to trial.
A second case indicted five others, including Castro, for lesser crimes.
With Castro taking a plea deal, that leaves two defendants remaining for the smaller case, including one man only taken into custody earlier this year.
One more defendant remains outstanding in the smaller case, but authorities have remained mum about his whereabouts.
The remaining 14 defendants and attorneys in both cases return to court in mid-November.
— Noozhawk North County editor Janene Scully can be reached at jscully@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
