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Teen gets 60 years in fatal drive-by
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Clifford Ward

March 2, 2007

AURORA -- An Aurora man was sentenced by a judge to 60 years in prison Wednesday for a gang-related murder on the city's east side.

Ivan Perez, 19, was convicted by a jury in January for the shooting death of 19-year-old Francisco Reyes of Aurora. At his trial, Perez's former girlfriend testified that she was driving Perez, who was then 16, around on Jan. 9, 2004, when Perez saw a vehicle that he believed belonged to a rival gang member.

She said Perez ordered her to quickly turn her car around and then pull alongside the car at a stop sign. When they did, Perez fired a single shot from a handgun that struck Reyes, the driver, in the head.

The girlfriend was not charged.

"This was a tough case," said the prosecutor, Kane County Assistant State's Atty. Sal LoPiccolo. "The defendant was very young. But the victim, Francisco Reyes, was young too."

Kathleen Colton, who defended Perez, had asked for a 45-year sentence.

"In reality, Ivan Perez will be 76 years old by the time he gets out of prison," said Colton, who said an appeal is planned.
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