One of the several teenagers arrested in connection to a shootout at The Citadel mall last year was sentenced to a term in the youthful offender system (YOS) on Monday. 

Arturo Garcia, 19, faced 11 felony charges, including several counts of attempted first-degree murder, for his role in a shootout at The Citadel mall in January of last year. 

According to an arrest affidavit for the incident obtained by The Gazette, a verbal altercation at a car meet sparked the shootout between two groups of people. Responding officers discovered 35 bullet casings in the parking lot and one individual who had been shot in the foot but refused to cooperate with law enforcement. 

Law enforcement would go on to obtain a warrant for Garcia’s social media accounts, where they discovered messages between Garcia and others where he admitted to partaking in the shooting, and that he found the shootout “fun.” 

“Appreciate y’all steppin w us we lit that s–t up and shut that car meet down,” Garcia wrote to his friend, according to the affidavit. 

“Omm (on my mama) that was fun and ofc (of course) ima step w you regardless man,” Garcia’s friend wrote back in response. 

“That was fun … no cap I was on a sicc one last night and it just had to hit the spot,” Garcia responded. 

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On Monday, Garcia appeared in Colorado’s 4th Judicial District Court for his sentencing hearing. Court records show that Garcia pleaded guilty to one count of attempted murder in February. 

The plea deal came with a mandatory sentence of seven years in YOS, and a suspended 20-year sentence in the Department of Corrections should Garcia fail any of the terms of his YOS sentence. 

No victims appeared in court Monday to speak, but Garcia himself spoke to offer his appreciation to all involved for the chance to turn a new leaf.

“I want to say thank you to (Judge Lin Billings-Vela) and the (District Attorney’s Office) for giving me this opportunity,” Garcia said prior to receiving his sentence. “Not a lot of people get this many chances in life.” 

Garcia added that he had recently completed his GED and is looking forward to beginning college classes at YOS. 

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“I hope (Garcia) takes YOS as a learning experience and we don’t find ourselves back here in the future,” prosecutor Jordan Welch said. 

There were six total arrests made in connection to the January shooting at The Citadel including Garcia, Armando Ontiveros, 19, Zaylene Espinoza, 20, and three juveniles, according to previous reporting from The Gazette. 

Court records show that Ontiveros pleaded guilty to one count of attempted first-degree murder in March and is scheduled for sentencing on May 6. Espinoza’s case — where she originally faced charges of accessory to a crime and attempting to influence a public servant — no longer exists, according to court records. 

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