Modesto father of slain boy received reduced prison sentence in exchange for testimony

The Modesto father of a slain boy on Wednesday told a jury that his federal prison sentence was reduced in exchange for testifying against three men accused of murder in his son’s shooting.

Epifanio Ramirez Sr. initially refused to speak with police about the shooting at his home in Modesto’s La Loma neighborhood. Even though his 10-year-old son, Epifanio Ramirez Jr., and his friend Jason Cyphers, 29, were gunned down, he testified that he didn’t trust police and wouldn’t cooperate with the investigation.

Aaron Aguilera, Randy Sifuentez and Joe Luis Ramirez are on trial charged with murder in the shooting deaths of the boy and Cyphers. The shooting occurred July 28, 2009, in the 100 block of Santa Barbara Avenue.

The boy, who was not the intended target, was struck by a bullet that went through a wall and hit his head. Cyphers was in the home’s open garage with the boy’s father and three other people when he was fatally wounded.

Before the deadly shooting occurred at his home, authorities had seized a sawed-off shotgun, a rifle and a .357 caliber handgun found at Ramirez’s home. That’s why he wasn’t armed when gunmen fired shots into his garage on the night his son was killed, he said.

Shortly after the shooting, the father was taken to a Bay Area hospital, where his finger was amputated. One of the bullets had struck his hand. When Ramirez tried to check out of the hospital, federal marshals took him into custody. Federal prosecutors indicted Ramirez on charges of illegal weapons possession.

He eventually pleaded guilty to the federal charges and was sentenced to federal prison in Arkansas. After months in federal custody, Ramirez said he changed his mind about speaking to police about the deadly shooting. He said his family warned him that if he didn’t cooperate with the investigation, he would eventually return to Modesto and continue his life of criminal activity.

“I was just done with everything,” Ramirez said on the witness stand. “My family was tired. I was tired.”

Ramirez has said he spent more than 20 years as a Norteño gang member, selling drugs and sharing some of his profits with gang leaders. He claims the three defendants in the double-homicide are Norteño gang members. Authorities call the deadly shooting gang retaliation against Ramirez, who had left the gang and continued selling drugs on Norteño turf.

He agreed to talk to police but didn’t want to testify in court. He said he wanted to leave the shooting in the past. Even former gang members who testify in a gang case are looked down upon on the street. “It just isn’t allowed ... it’s like one of the lowest things there is, if not the lowest,” Ramirez told the jury.

He also said he knew the risk involved if he testified against former fellow Norteño gang members. It could result in his death. When asked by the prosecutor if he had anything to lose by testifying, Ramirez answered, “My life, that’s it.”

He said he no longer has feelings of vengeance toward the defendants. He said he wants to testify in the trial for his family. Local prosecutors petitioned the federal court to reduce Ramirez’s prison sentence in exchange for his testimony in this case. He no longer is in custody and is serving federal parole.

This story was originally published April 29, 2015 at 3:01 PM with the headline "Modesto father of slain boy received reduced prison sentence in exchange for testimony."