4th man pleads guilty in 2009 wrong-house gang shooting

4th man pleads guilty in 2009 wrong-house gang shooting

(Family photo)


5 photos
Save Story
Leer en español

Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes

This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.

SALT LAKE CITY — The last of four men has pleaded guilty to shooting and killing a sleeping woman when they went looking for members of a rival gang and broke into the wrong house.

George Blake Angilau, 26, pleaded guilty Monday to manslaughter and discharge of a firearm, with both charges reduced to second-degree felonies, for the death of 22-year-old Krystal Flores on July 19, 2009. Three additional firearms charges were dismissed as part of a deal with prosecutors.

Angilau will be sentenced Nov. 23.

Angilau is the last of four men — the others are Nitokalisi Niki Fonua, 33; Pailate Lomu, 27; and Alexander Bloomfield, 36 — to take a plea deal and admit to the shooting. They were originally charged with murder, a first-degree felony.

According to police and a 2011 preliminary hearing for Bloomfield and Lomu, the four men were members of the West Valley-based Baby Regulators at the time of the shooting. Tensions were high between the gang and the Tongan Crips group, and the men went looking for a party where they believed they would find members of the rival gang.

According to charging documents, an armed Fonua headed into the home at 1309 S. Stewart St., but realized it was the wrong house.

Others in the home took cover in another room when two men burst in through the front door and gunfire rang out. They didn't witness the shooting but emerged to find Flores on the couch where she had been resting, wounded with a gunshot to the head. She died Aug. 2, 2009.

While Fonua claimed sole responsibility for the shooting at a sentencing hearing earlier this year, prosecutors noted there is evidence that several people entered the home and suggested Fonua was trying to protect members of his gang.

George Angilau, 26. Photo: Salt Lake County Jail
George Angilau, 26. Photo: Salt Lake County Jail

Fonua pleaded guilty in April to a reduced charge of manslaughter, a second-degree felony, in Flores' death. In the same hearing, charges were filed and Fonua pleaded guilty to manslaughter, a second-degree felony, in the 2007 killing of Viliami Latu, 34, who Fonua admitted to shooting when he went to the man's house to settle a debt. He was sentenced to consecutive sentences of two to 20 years in prison for the two killings.

Bloomfield pleaded guilty in August to criminal homicide by assault, felony discharge of a firearm and attempted burglary, all reduced to third-degree felonies. He was sentenced last month to one term of three to five years in prison for the firearm charge and two terms of zero to five years in prison for the additional charges. The sentences are consecutive.

Lomu pleaded guilty in May to manslaughter and burglary, with both charges reduced to second-degree felonies. He was sentenced July 19 to concurrent terms of two to 20 years in prison, with a weapons enhancement. That sentence will run consecutively to other prison sentences he is already serving. Email: mromero@deseretnews.com Twitter: McKenzieRomero

Photos

Related stories

Most recent Utah stories

Related topics

Utah
McKenzie Romero

    STAY IN THE KNOW

    Get informative articles and interesting stories delivered to your inbox weekly. Subscribe to the KSL.com Trending 5.
    By subscribing, you acknowledge and agree to KSL.com's Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

    KSL Weather Forecast