'Predator' sentenced for killing teen girlfriend who 'no longer wanted to have anything to do with him'

HOUSTON (TCN) -- A 29-year-old man will spend over seven decades behind bars for fatally shooting his underage girlfriend in 2018.

The Harris County District Attorney’s Office announced that a jury convicted Irbin Vargas in November of the murder of 16-year-old Lourdes "Betty" Sandoval. A judge sentenced Vargas on Dec. 3 to 75 years in prison with parole eligibility after 30 years served.

According to prosecutors, Vargas and Sandoval were in a relationship at the time even though Vargas was 22 years old. Sandoval wanted to "make a clean break from him" after he had allegedly "threatened her life and put a gun to her head." Sandoval told her friends and family about the incident.

On the night of Sept. 12, 2018, the district attorney’s office said Sandoval texted Vargas that "she no longer wanted to have anything to do with him." Several minutes later, Vargas "ambushed" Sandoval while she was waiting outside her home in a car to meet with a friend. According to prosecutors, Sandoval’s friend watched the victim as she exited her residence, and Vargas approached her "from the shadows" before fatally shooting her in the head. Vargas fled the scene, but Houston Police later apprehended him.

Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg said, "No one should ever lose their life to domestic violence, and this case is especially tragic because this woman was so young and had so much to live for — we mourn her loss with her family."

Assistant District Attorney Philip White added, "He was a 22-year-old predator who worked to get close to a teenage girl. Five minutes after she told him that it was over for good, he killed her."

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