After 'Most Extreme Anti-Mask Incident' in Anaheim, 3 Arrests

2 men face life in prison after allegedly shooting up strip club after being asked to wear face coverings
By Jenn Gidman,  Newser Staff
Posted Dec 22, 2020 7:54 AM CST
Cops: They Shot Up Strip Club With AK-47 After Mask Request
From left: Juan Jose Acosta-Soto, Edgar Nava-Ayala, and Daniel Ocampo.   (Anaheim Police Department, via KTLA)

Authorities tell the Washington Post a late October shooting at a strip club in Anaheim, Calif., was "the most extreme anti-mask incident" in the city to date. Now, three suspects have been arrested, and two of them face life in prison if convicted. Prosecutors say that on Halloween night, 34-year-old Edgar Nava-Ayala, 22-year-old Daniel Juvenal Ocampo, and 20-year-old Juan Jose Acosta-Soto were at the Sahara Theater, when Nava-Ayala and Ocampo were escorted out after refusing to wear face coverings, per an Orange County DA release cited by NBC News. The three men allegedly returned to the club later that night, with Acosta-Soto behind the wheel of a red Toyota Camry, and as they drove past, Nava-Ayala is said to have fired at least 15 rounds from an AK-47 into the club, wounding four, KTLA reports.

Three of the injured were hospitalized; one had to undergo surgery, while another suffered a shattered shoulder bone. A fourth injured person refused medical attention, Anaheim Police Sgt. Shane Carringer tells the Post. Officials say the suspects were arrested Thursday after a six-week investigation. "It is nothing short of a miracle that no one was killed," Carringer says. "There were over 30 people in there, and these guys are suspected of indiscriminately firing at innocent bystanders with a high-powered rifle." Nava-Ayala and Ocampo have been charged with felony attempted murder, assault with an assault weapon, and shooting into an occupied building, as well as related charges, and could see life behind bars if convicted. Acosta-Soto was hit with the assault and shooting into a building charges and faces up to 17 years in prison. All three have pleaded not guilty, and bail is set at $5 million each. (More shooting stories.)

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