‘It’s been a long wait.’ Family of murdered Merced man confront killer during sentencing

A Merced man who was convicted of murder in a drug deal that turned deadly will spend 50 years to life in prison for his crime.

Tyler Seng Saephan, 27, received his sentence from Judge Ronald Hansen just before family members of the victim Adrian Ayala, 20, addressed Saephan and the court.

Saephan was convicted by a jury last month following a trial. Ayala’s family thanked those who helped to solve the crime, which remained an open case between Ayala’s 2015 murder and when Merced police finally caught up to Saephan in 2017.

“It’s been a long wait of seven years to find closure for myself and my family,” said Ashley Ochoa, Ayala’s sister. “Although this won’t bring my brother back, we can finally find peace.”

Addressing Saephan directly, Ochoa said she wants him to think about what he’s done for the rest of his life. “I hope during your sentence you sit and realize what a huge part of our lives you robbed from us,” she told Saephan.

Ayala was killed in the driveway of his family’s house during an apparent drug deal gone wrong, according to court files.

Saephan, along with another man named Cesar Barrera, Jr., drove to Ayala’s house to buy marijuana from him. There was an apparent dispute over payment, and Saephan shot Ayala in the chest before he and Barrera drove away.

Ayala was later pronounced dead at Mercy Medical Center Merced. Barrera disappeared after Ayala’s murder and remains at large, according to courthouse personnel.

The gun used to shoot Ayala was stolen from the house of a friend of Saephan’s in Merced, according to police reports. Several other firearms were stolen from that house during a house party in 2017, just before Ayala’s death.

Members of Ayala’s family said they would never recover from the trauma of losing a son, brother, cousin and father to an act of violence.

“The horrific crime you committed forever impacted our lives,” Ayala’s father, Chris Ochoa, told Saephan in court. “I will never forgive you for that.”

Ochoa further vowed to make sure Saephan stays in prison for the rest of his life. “Anytime you’re up for a parole review, I’ll be there to remind the state of what a vicious person you are,” Ochoa said.

Saephan could be eligible for parole after serving about 42 years in prison.

This story was originally published March 18, 2022 at 11:50 AM.