Houston Man Sentenced to 60 Years in Prison for 2019 Incident That Left 5 Individuals Dead

Louis Malik Santee, a 25-year-old man involved in a crime spree that resulted in the deaths of five people in 2019, was sentenced to 60 years in prison on Friday, following victim impact statements from the families of the victims. Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg made the announcement, emphasizing the lack of respect for human life displayed by the convicted man.

Santee pleaded guilty to three counts of murder in exchange for three concurrent 60-year prison sentences just before his capital murder trial was set to begin. The sentencing took place in a crowded courtroom, with family members of the victims delivering emotional victim impact statements.

In the first case, Santee admitted guilt in engaging in organized criminal activity and received a 60-year prison sentence for his involvement in the murder of 19-year-old Ryan McGowan. The young man was fatally shot in the backseat of a car in the 11300 block of Windfern on September 6, 2019.

Santee was also facing a potential life sentence without parole for a capital murder charge related to the killing of two people. However, he pleaded guilty to murder and received a 60-year sentence instead. In this case, he followed 65-year-old Ramiro Reyes and his 63-year-old wife, Rosalva Reyes, and murdered them in front of their home in northwest Houston on September 25, 2019. The couple had just left an area hospital late at night after Mrs. Reyes’ elderly mother passed away. Santee had mistaken their purple Dodge Charger for a rival gang member’s car and followed them home before opening fire as they exited their vehicle.

Lastly, Santee pleaded guilty to murder and received another 60-year sentence for his involvement in a deadly drive-by shooting at a music video filming on December 27, 2019. Videographer Gonzalo Andrew Gonzalez, 22, and Jonathan Jimenez, 20, were killed in the shooting, and seven other individuals were injured.

Assistant District Attorney Napoleon Stewart, a chief in the District Attorney’s Organized Crime Division, prosecuted the case alongside ADA Rachel Guffy. Stewart expressed the importance of bringing justice to the victims’ families and acknowledged the collaborative efforts of the FBI and the Harris County Sheriff’s Office in the case.

Under Texas law, a prison sentence of 60 years or more, including life imprisonment, makes a defendant eligible for parole after serving 30 years, regardless of the total years of the sentence. Additionally, because Santee pleaded guilty, he is unable to appeal his conviction or prison sentence.