Lorain man serving prison sentence for fatal April 2021 shooting

A Lorain man is serving a sentence of 15 to 18 1/2 years in prison after pleading guilty to shooting and killing another man in April 2021. Joshua Oquendo, 30, pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter, felonious assault, tampering with evidence, discharge of a firearm on or near prohibited premises, and firearms specifications in Lorain County Common Pleas Court on Feb. 9. The Lorain County Prosecutor's Office dropped two murder charges against Oquendo following plea negotiations. Judge Melissa Kobasher sentenced Oquendo to a range of seven to 10 1/2 years in prison for voluntary manslaughter, and added an additional, mandatory eight years in prison for firearms specifications. Oquendo also was ordered to register as a violent offender and to pay $5,095.77 restitution to victim Edwin Guzman's family, according to court records. Oquendo received 662 days credit for time served awaiting trial, according to Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction records. A trial had been scheduled to begin in Kobasher's courtroom on April 24, according to court records. Oquendo had been charged with murder and five other offenses in the April 29, 2021, shooting death of Guzman, 36. Lorain police found Guzman behind the wheel of a Nissan that had hit several other cars before coming to rest in a yard at East 29th Street and Gary Avenue. Guzman had been shot several times. He was taken to Mercy Health Hospital in Lorain, where he died. Oquendo is in the Richland Correctional Institution. His earliest possible release date is April 25, 2036, according to the ODRC. A message seeking comment on the conclusion of the case was left for Oquendo's attorney.