8-year-old Malakai and 4-year-old Mason Orozco Romero died after the defendant crashed into the car they were in. Prosecutors said he was going more than 100 mph.
SAN DIEGO — 21-year-old Angel Velasquez Salgado was sentenced to 30 years to life in prison Thursday for a high-speed pursuit that took the lives of two young brothers in Mountain View.
“Since the night of the crash, my life has been shattered. I’m not the same person I was, and my family is not the same,” said Victoria Romero, the boys’ mother.
“My two little boys, Mason and Malakai, were my whole world. Malakai was only eight years old, full of curiosity and energy, always ready to help his little brother. Mason just had the biggest smile and the sweetest heart. They were loved by so many people, and they should still be here today,” she said.
During Thursday’s hearing, more than 20 family members of the boys wore t-shirts in their honor. They packed the courtroom. They brought two life sized photos of the boys that they placed inside the gallery. Tissue boxes were handed around, as nearly everyone in the courtroom was crying.
8-year-old Malakai and 4-year-old Mason Orozco Romero died in December 2023. Prosecutors said Salgado was driving more than 100 miles an hour when he hit the car they were in with their mother and aunt, while he was trying to evade police. The car started on fire. Prosecutors said Mason was killed while watching videos of monster trucks and his brother was asleep.
“Your punishment is nothing compared to the fate you left us with,” said Cynthia Luna, a representative for the Romero family.
“There is no moving on. We are trapped by the love and grief of our boys. We go through the motions, we breathe, we laugh, we eat, we work, we do the everyday things that need to be done, but we remain in that moment, that hour, those minutes, those final seconds, when we lost our boys,” she said.
Salgado read an apology to the victims’ family.
“I want you to know I’m truly sorry from the bottom of my heart,” he said, adding that he hopes some day the family can accept his apology.
According to prosecutors, Salgado has a child of his own.
“When the defendant got caught and found out that he had killed two innocent children, this father of a young child himself could only ask: “Do they give you more time for minors or adults? Or is it the same price?” Is it the same price? Is it the same price? What this family has lost has no price. What this family has lost they can never get back,” said Deputy District Attorney Jessica Coto.
“Instead of calling on 911, he offered to pay a nearby flower sales lady and then her customer $2,000 to get him out of there. Instead of going back to make sure that everyone was okay, he hid in plain sight in a stranger’s front yard pretending to be somebody else, as Mason and Malachi lay dying on a freeway embankment,” she said.