First attacker in Feb. fight sent to prison

Published 11:11 am Friday, September 13, 2013

The first of three men guilty in a February attack outside an Austin gas station was sent to prison Friday and owes several thousand dollars.

Moyeda

Moyeda

Jose Moyeda, 19, of Austin, was sentenced to 21 months in prison for second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon causing great bodily harm and second-degree riot with a dangerous weapon, both felonies. He was given credit for 204 days in jail but must pay $16,705 in restitution to one of the victims, as well.

Luis Rodriguez, 27, and Roberto Rocha, 23, have pleaded guilty to the same charges and await sentencing.

Rodriguez

Rodriguez

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Four victims said the three men attacked them on Feb. 20 in the 1200 block of East Oakland Avenue., and one assailant repeatedly hit a 17-year-old with an aluminum bat and fractured his skull. The Mayo Clinic never released details about his condition.

One victim said the fight was gang related and involved a group called the “Northsiders.” The assailants may have retaliated because they say the victims harassed a 14-year-old boy at the Austin Public Library.

Rocha

Rocha

Police arrested the suspects in a black Lincoln car shortly after the fight at about 7:30 p.m. The victims — 17, 16, and two 15-year-olds — positively identified the suspects, according to the court complaints.

The court complaint stated the victim who was struck in the head suffered cranial hemorrhaging and a fractured lower skull. Still, he gave details to an officer at the hospital —similar details other victims mentioned. According to their accounts, the assailants exited the car, and Rodriguez grabbed the bat from the trunk. In the court complaint, the victims say Rocha and Moyeda tackled the 17-year-old, and Rodriguez hit him several times with the bat. Another victim reported being hit several times, as well. The victims and a witness say Moyeda had a crowbar.