BEDFORD, Va. – An accused MS-13 gang member has received the maximum sentence for his part in the 2017 death of a Lynchburg teenager.
Josue Coreas-Ventura was sentenced to two life sentences plus ten years to all be served consecutively, with credit received for time already served.
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On March 27th, 2017, 17-year-old Raymond Wood was abducted from his home, driven into Bedford County, and killed by a group of alleged MS-13 gang members over marijuana. Coreas-Ventura has been sentenced for his part in the death of Wood, and is one of five others serving time in connection to the teenager’s death.
Coreas-Venturas’s sentencing comes nearly a year after his trial concluded, which lasted five days and came to a close on Feb. 14, 2022. Jurors in Bedford Circuit Court found him guilty of both charges he faced: aggravated murder and abduction for pecuniary benefit.
During the trial in February of 2022, the prosecution claimed 17-year-old Wood was murdered for being “a barrier to the goal” as MS-13 tried to make Lynchburg their territory to sell marijuana and cocaine; and also said the defendant asked for other alleged gang members to help him kill Wood, as he supplied the knife and gloves used.