BAKERSFIELD, Calif.(KBAK/KBFX) — A gang-related shooting spree in Bakersfield that left two people dead and three others wounded ended with a life prison sentence for at least one of the defendants on Thursday, according to Kern County court records.
Jorge Flores was sentenced to 129 years to life without parole on March 5, 2026, the Kern County court website shows. The sentencing followed a jury verdict announced by the Kern County District Attorney’s Office on Jan. 22, 2026.
As of Thursday at 8 p.m., court records did not indicate how many years co-defendant Carlos Trejo was sentenced to, but he was in court Thursday morning for sentencing.
A Kern County jury found Flores and Trejon guilty of the murders of Vladimir Sanchez, 27, and Scottie Tripp, 28, in January 2021. The jury also found special circumstances true, including that the murders were committed in furtherance of a criminal street gang and by lying in wait, the district attorney’s office said.
The jury also found both defendants guilty of attempting to murder three other victims during what prosecutors described as a crime spree involving three separate shootings at three different locations in Bakersfield on Jan. 15 and 16, 2021.
The Kern County District Attorney’s Office said on January 22, 2026, a Kern County jury found Jorge Flores (left) and Carlos Trejo (right) guilty of the first-degree murders of two people. PHOTO: KBAK/KBFX, Kern County DA
According to the district attorney’s office, the first shooting happened at about 10:30 p.m. on Jan. 15, 2021, when Flores and Trejo, described as active participants in the Norteno criminal street gang, drove in the area of Cottonwood Road and Cannon Avenue looking for a potential target. Flores drove up to a man riding a bicycle, and Trejo, from the passenger seat, asked the victim, “Where are you from?”, then fired multiple shots, hitting him in the stomach and left arm, prosecutors said. Flores drove away in his white Lexus sedan, and the victim was rushed to Kern Medical, where he received life-saving care, the district attorney’s office said.
Thirteen minutes later, prosecutors said Flores drove to the area of East Planz Road and Meeks Avenue and passed a parked vehicle with Vladmir Sanchez in the driver’s seat and another man in the passenger seat.
Bakersfield Police Department is investigating a shooting that happened near Meeks Ave. and Brook St. on Friday night that injured at least two people. (KBAK/KBFX)
Flores circled back and approached from behind, and Trejo fired nine rounds at the two men, hitting both, according to the district attorney’s office. Sanchez suffered multiple gunshot wounds and died at the scene, prosecutors said. The second victim was taken to Kern Medical and received life-saving care.
The district attorney’s office said Flores and Trejo left that area at about 10:46 p.m. in Flores’ white Lexus.
The third shooting happened the next morning, prosecutors said. At about 5:15 a.m. on Jan. 16, 2021, Flores and Trejo went to the area of Belle Terrace and Taylor Street and walked outside an apartment complex looking for potential targets, the district attorney’s office said.
Bakersfield Police Dept. is investigating an incident and a coroner’s van was reported on Belle Terrace and Taylor Street on Saturday morning. (KBAK/KBFX)
Both saw Scottie Tripp, who was in a vehicle with his brother, warming up the engine before heading to work. Tripp ran back inside his apartment after realizing he had forgotten something, while his brother stayed in the parked car.
Prosecutors said Flores and Trejo hid behind a block wall and waited for Tripp to return. When Tripp came back and walked toward the car, Trejo asked, “Where are you from?” and then fired seven rounds, killing Tripp immediately, the district attorney’s office said.
Afterward, prosecutors said Flores and Trejo ran away on foot, and Tripp’s brother pursued them in his vehicle. Trejo stopped running and fired five additional shots at the brother and his vehicle, striking the car, according to the district attorney’s office. Flores and Trejo then left in Flores’ white Lexus and drove back to Trejo’s home, prosecutors said.
Detectives with the Bakersfield Police Department investigated. Prosecutors said additional evidence in April 2021 linked the defendants to the crime scenes, and investigators connected them to the same vehicle used in all three shootings and confirmed their locations at the time of the murders, leading to their arrests.
“Flores and Trejo acted with clear intent to commit murder as part of a crime spree carried out for the benefit of their street gang,” Kern County District Attorney Cynthia Zimmer stated in 2021. “Two lives were lost, and three others were permanently altered due to this senseless act of violence. These crimes demand serious consequences, and we will pursue severe punishment to ensure these individuals can no longer harm our community.”
Flores was credited 1,779 days, according to court officials.
Eyewitness News has reached out to court officials for sentencing information on co-defendant Carlos Trejo.
This story is developing.