A Fresno man convicted of fatally shooting a Long Beach man nearly two years ago along a freeway offramp was sentenced Thursday to 40 years to life in state prison.
A jury convicted Surind Phon, 34, last Nov. 22 of second-degree murder, shooting at an occupied motor vehicle and discharging a firearm from a motor vehicle in connection with the Feb. 23, 2018, slaying of Glen Chico, 31.
Long Beach police said a passerby spotted the small white car along the westbound Anaheim Street offramp of the Long Beach (710) Freeway around 12:30 a.m. that day, and officers found Chico inside, dead of a gunshot wound. The discovery prompted the closure of a portion of Anaheim Street for several hours.
Authorities believe that Phon shot him because he was enraged that Chico was driving a car that belonged to a woman Phon was dating, according to Deputy District Attorney Peggy Kane.
Chico — who was also believed to have been dating the woman — had borrowed her car after the two spent time together earlier that day, the prosecutor said.
The victim was shot once in the chest.
“The event that occurred was not my intention,” the Long Beach Press-Telegram reported of Phon’s letter to the court. “I was intoxicated and that affected my brain. I wish I could take it all back.”
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