Fourth Person Found Guilty in Brutal 2014 Murder of Chinese USC Student Ji Xinran
By Carl Samson
A fourth person was found guilty of the murder of Ji Xinran, the 24-year-old Chinese graduate student beaten to death in Los Angeles four years ago.
Ji, who attended the University of Southern California, was walking home from a study group near the campus when four people attacked him on June 24, 2014.
On Wednesday, 21-year-old Alberto Ochoa became the fourth person convicted of his murder.
Alejandra Guerrero and Andrew Garcia are both serving life sentences for first-degree murder, while Jonathan Del Carmen is serving 15 years to life after pleading guilty to second-degree murder.
Ji, who was beaten with a wrench and baseball bat, staggered to his flat outside the campus before succumbing to his injuries. A roommate found him hours later.
After the vicious attack, Ochoa and his co-conspirators headed to Dockweiler State Beach and robbed a man and a woman.
“People like our age are now prepping their daughter’s and their son’s wedding, and their life is full of joy,” the South China Morning Post quoted Ji’s father as saying. “But every day instead for us we are paying tribute to our son, crying.”
Ochoa, who was also found guilt y of second-degree robbery, attempted second-degree robbery and assault with a deadly weapon, will be back in court for his sentencing on March 8.
The 21-year-old convict is expected to face life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.
According to the Los Angeles Times, prosecutors argued that Ji was targeted in the robbery attempt because he was Chinese and probably had money.
Speaking to reporters, Deputy District Attorney John McKinnney said that Ochoa’s verdict must be great news for Ji’s family, who visited Los Angeles multiple times during trials.
“The greatest satisfaction though is for whatever closure and peace there is for Ji’s family back in China,” KTLA quoted McKinney as saying.
However, he added that Ochoa has never “expressed any real remorse for what he did.”
Featured Images via KTLA (Left) and Ji Family (Right)
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