Oklahoma man gets life for killing mother and 4-year-old daughter in Long Beach

An Oklahoma man was sentenced Feb. 2 to life without the possibility of parole for killing a mother and her young daughter outside their home in Long Beach two years ago, according to the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office. 

Jurors deliberated for about an hour on Jan. 26 before finding Brandon Ivan Colbert, 23, guilty of two counts of first-degree murder for killing Carina Mancera, 26, and Jennabel Anaya, 4. Colbert also was convicted of one count of attempted murder. In addition, jurors found him guilty of the special allegations of lying in wait and committing multiple murders.

On Aug. 6, 2016, Mancera, Jennabel and the girl’s father, Luis Anaya were returning from the grocery store while Colbert was hiding behind a sign near their apartment, prosecutors said. When the family arrived, Colbert jumped out and fired on the family with a shotgun, killing Mancera and her daughter. Luis Anaya was not hit by gunfire. 

About three weeks after the shooting, Colbert was arrested on suspicion of driving a stolen vehicle. A DNA swab was obtained from him, ultimately linking him to the killings, for which he was arrested in November.

Update: Feb. 28, 2018: This article was updated to include the defendant's prison sentence.

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