CA, Pair of Vagos members found guilty in beating, fatal shooting

OFF THE WIRE
Mike Cruz, Staff Writer
FONTANA - Two members of the Vagos motorcycle gang have been found guilty of the beating and shooting death of a Fontana man over the sale of a motorcycle.
Keith Allen Silva, 47, and David Anthony Beltran, 35, were found guilty of killing 34-year-old Dennis Daoussis, who was beaten at a Fontana home in April 2003, bound with zip ties and duct tape, then taken by pickup truck to the desert community of Landers.
An ATV rider found Daoussis' body April 5, 2003 on Ming Road in Landers. He had suffered a gunshot to the left temple.
The verdicts were announced late Tuesday afternoon before Judge Ingrid A. Uhler in Fontana Superior Court, according to court records.
"I'm just happy that we're finally able to give some sense of closure to Dennis' family," Deputy District Attorney John Thomas said Wednesday. "They've been waiting for a long time to find justice in this case and justice in Dennis' death."
Silva, who president of the Berdoo Chapter of the Vagos at the time, and Beltran, who was sergeant at arms of the Inland Empire Chapter, were found guilty of first-degree murder, torture and various special allegations which include the use of a weapon and committing a crime to benefit a gang, according to court records.
Lawyers for Silva and Beltran could not be reached Wednesday at their offices.
The victim's death was centered around an unpaid debt to Sammy Langager, a Vagos member who entrusted Daoussis with money to buy a motorcycle, say prosecutors.
Langager loaned Daoussis $3,000 to purchase a Harley Davidson motorcycle. Langager waited all night at the parking lot of an Ontario truck stop for Daoussis, a Vagos associate, to return. He never did.
Sheriff's detectives say Langager never received the motorcycle, and he wasn't given his money back. When Daoussis later showed up at the truck stop, he was taken to a Banana Street home where he was beaten.
Silva, Beltran and two other men took the victim from the Fontana home in Beltran's truck. But the two others were dropped off at the former Crossroads bar in Yucaipa, while Silva and Beltran continued with the victim to Landers, say prosecutors.
DNA evidence found on a white towel near Daoussis' body was a match for Beltran.
Defense lawyer Dan Faulhaber, who represents Silva, told the jury that the case was a "who done it." There was no question, he said, that Daoussis died in Landers.
But the victim walked out of the home, on his own power and was gone 15 to 30 minutes before Beltran's truck left, Faulhaber had said.
Thomas said the jury had been deliberating since Nov. 30, but the court learned Tuesday that a holdout juror had failed to disclose that she was a crime victim in an unrelated case. The court replaced that juror, and unanimous verdicts were reached within hours.
In a rare move, five members or former members of the Vagos were given immunity for their testimony. Four of them had been at the Banana Street when the victim was beat.
"That's really unusual," Thomas said. "But that was the only way we were going to be able to put this case together, by giving a number of them immunity."
After the verdicts were announced, Silva admitted to having a prior strike. He faces about 95 to 105 years to life in state prison at a sentencing hearing Feb. 23 for both defendants, said Thomas.
Beltran faces about 65 to 75 years to life in state prison.