Filipino gets life for ’14 Ohio bar killings

Igmidio Mista

Igmidio Mista

DALY CITY, California — An undocumented Filipino who shot and killed three men at a Fremont, Ohio bar last year received a life sentence for his crimes Tuesday in an emotional court hearing before Sandusky Country Judge Barbara Ansted.

Igmidio Mista, 34, pleaded guilty to three counts of murder and one count of attempted murder in a last minute deal before the case went to trial.

In exchange, the prosecutor’s office agreed to dismiss one count of felonious assault and one count of possessing a firearm in a bar.

Judge Ansted then immediately sentenced Mista to life in prison. He will not be eligible for parole until he has served at least 40 years behind bars.

Mista, who came to the United States as a tourist in 2000, opened fire inside the Last Call Bar March 9, fatally shooting off-duty Elmore police officer Jose Andy Chavez, 26; Ramiro Sanchez, 28; and Daniel Ramirez, 25.  Ramiro Arreola, 25, was also wounded, but ultimately survived.

Wearing a shirt and tie Mista, remained mostly silent at Tuesday’s proceedings. He spoke softly when Judge Ansted asked him questions during the hearing.

The victims’ family members packed into the courtroom, and some of them wept as Mista was led in handcuffs into the courtroom. Some of the family members said they were relieved they would not have to go through the pains of a trial, which was expected to last about two weeks.

“This has been over our heads,” said Veronica, Daniel Ramirez’s widow. “It would have been two weeks of torture. It doesn’t bring them back.”

Ronnie Sanchez’s mother, Julia Sanchez, said during the hearing and afterward that she forgives Mista. She said she feels at peace because the case is finished.

“We hope one day, you’ll realize what you did and repent,” Julia Sanchez said in an extraordinary act of compassion. “I forgive you for what you’ve done.”

Sanchez later told reporters that many members of the victims’ families did not want to go to trial because they did not want to hear details of the tragic case.

Philippine consular officials, who reached out to make sure the accused rights were protected, said Mista had told them that he worked at a local tomato company while his mother works in Germany.

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