HOUSTON – A Houston man was sentenced to 60 years in prison on Friday for a 2019 crime spree that killed five people, Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg said.
Louis Malik Santee, 25, pleaded guilty to three counts of murder to receive three 60-year prison sentences before the start of his capital murder trial. The three sentences will be served at the same time.
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A total of five people died in the cases Santee was convicted of.
“We echo the families’ sentiments that this man has no respect for human life and is a danger to the community,” Ogg said. “We sincerely hope that he serves every single day of the 60-year prison sentence.”
The victims’ family members spoke in the courtroom on Friday.
For the first case, Santee pleaded guilty to engaging in organized criminal activity. He received a 60-year sentence for assisting in the killing of 19-year-old Ryan McGowan. The man was shot in the backseat of a car in the 11300 block of Windfern on Sept. 6, 2019.
“Next, Santee was facing life without parole for a capital murder charge for killing two people in a single incident. He pleaded guilty to murder in exchange for a 60-year sentence. In that case, he followed Ramiro Reyes, 65, and his wife, Rosalva Reyes, 63, and killed them in front of their home in northwest Houston on September 25, 2019,” the DA’s office said.
The couple had jus left a hospital after Rosalva’s mother had died. Santee mistakenly thought their purple Dodge Charger belonged to a rival gang member. He then followed the pair home and shot them as they got out of the car.
Santee also pleaded guilty to murder for killing two people in a drive-by shooting on Dec. 27, 2019, where a music video was being filmed. He received a 60-year sentence for this case.
Videographer Gonzalo Andrew Gonzalez, 22, and Jonathan Jimenez, 20, were killed in the shooting, and seven other people were injured.
Assistant District Attorney Napoleon Stewart, a chief in the District Attorney’s Organized Crime Division, prosecuted the case with ADA Rachel Guffy.
“Louis Santee caused terror throughout 2019, so it is good that the victims’ families were able to get justice today,” Stewart said. “And we appreciate all of the hard work done by the FBI and the Harris County Sheriff’s Office.”
Santee will be eligible for parole after 30 years, but he will not be able to appeal his sentencing.