LOS ANGELES — A 27-year-old man was found guilty today of the 2019 murder of Los Angeles Police Officer Juan Diaz while he was off duty in Lincoln Heights.

“This verdict marks a long-awaited and important milestone in this case that has demanded patience and diligence from everyone involved. While this decision represents a significant step toward accountability, it does not lessen the profound loss of life that was taken or the lasting impact on those who knew and loved Officer Juan Diaz,” Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman said. “We hope that Officer Diaz’s family finds continued strength in the support of those around them. I’d like to recognize Deputy District Attorneys Michael Blake and Michael Michelena from the Crimes Against Peace Officers Division, who alongside investigators from LAPD Robbery-Homicide Division, worked tirelessly throughout the last seven years to hold the defendants accountable for their senseless acts of violence.”

Cristian Facundo (dob 5/28/99) of Temecula was convicted today in case BA480085 of one felony count each of first-degree murder with a gang special circumstance allegation, shooting at an occupied motor vehicle and vandalism with over $400 damage. Multiple firearm allegations were also found true.

Facundo is expected to be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole on Oct. 27 in Dept. 108 at the Foltz Criminal Justice Center.

In 2021, Facundo’s co-defendant Francisco Talamantes III, then 23 years old, of Temecula pleaded guilty to one felony count each of attempted murder, vandalism with over $400 damage, assault with a firearm and voluntary manslaughter plus a gang enhancement. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison.

That same year, Facundo’s other co-defendant Ashlynn Smith, then 18 years old, of Temecula pleaded guilty to one felony count each of vandalism with over $400 damage and as an accessory after the fact. Smith is presently scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 18 in Dept. 108. She faces up to eight years and eight months in state prison.

On July 27, 2019, Facundo was involved in a confrontation with a group of people including off-duty Officer Juan Diaz. Facundo returned to the group and opened fire, killing Diaz and wounding another man, as they were driving away. The defendants also vandalized a vehicle less than an hour before Facundo murdered Diaz. After the murder, Smith drove Facundo and Talamantes back to the vandalism scene where they assaulted another individual with a firearm.

The case is being prosecuted by Deputy District Attorneys Michael Blake and Michael Michelena of the Crimes Against Peace Officers Division and was investigated by the Los Angeles Police Department’s Robbery-Homicide Division.