BENTONVILLE -- A Rogers man was sentenced Thursday to 200 years in prison for kidnapping a woman and shooting her in the leg.
Oscar Perez, 36, was found guilty of kidnapping, battery, possession of firearm by certain persons, aggravated assault and terroristic threatening. Perez was charged with enhancements for using a firearm, and he was charged as a habitual offender.
It took the jury of nine men and three women less than a hour Wednesday afternoon to find Perez guilty of the felony charges.
Sentencing proceedings began Thursday morning. The jury deliberated for a few hours on the sentences before returning with its recommendations.
The panel recommended that Perez serve 75 years for kidnapping, 40 years for battery, 40 years for possession of the firearm, 15 years for aggravated assault, and 30 years for the terroristic threatening. The jury recommended that the sentences be served consecutively.
Benton County Circuit Judge Robin Green followed the jury's recommendation. She sentenced Perez to serve 200 years in the Arkansas Department of Correction.
"I want to thank you," Perez said as he looked at the panel.
Perez then turned and looked toward the woman he kidnapped and shot, Neryda Gonzalez.
"I want to say I'm sorry if I hurt you in any shape or form," he said. "I love you."
Perez was arrested last year.
Rogers police were called to 1114 S. 24th St. on April 9 concerning a shooting investigation, according to a probable-cause affidavit. Gonzalez told police she shot herself in the leg April 6 during target practice in Bella Vista, according to court documents.
Police officers went April 13 to a weapons call at 915 S. Eighth St., and police found Gonzalez at the scene, according to the affidavit. She told officers she lied to them April 9, and Perez took her from her home to Bella Vista and shot her in the leg, according to the affidavit.
Gonzalez later told Larry Taylor, a Rogers police detective, Perez had been up for several days and using methamphetamine when he started accusing her of "setting him up," according to the affidavit.
Perez later made her get in a Ford Expedition, and he sat in the back with her while another man drove, Gonzalez said. She said they drove around wooded areas in Bella Vista, and Perez told her he was going to kill her because she knew too much, according to the affidavit.
Gonzalez testified Tuesday and admitted to lying to police about the shooting. She said Perez shot her in the leg. Gonzalez admitted to delivering letters last week to the Benton County prosecutor's office and Perez's attorney. The letters again claim the shooting was accidental.
Gonzalez told jurors she lied because she cares for Perez and didn't want to get him in trouble. She said the shooting wasn't accidental.
Prosecutors also called Jesse Chavez as a witness. He was arrested in Gonzalez's kidnapping and shooting. He was with Perez when the crime occurred.
Prosecutors also showed jurors a video of Chavez smoking methamphetamine while Gonzalez with the bullet wound in her leg was nearby, but not visible in the video.
"Oscar threatened to dump her body in the woods and made her ride with him as he looked for a place to dump it," Sarah Rinehart, a deputy prosecutor, told jurors during her closing statements.
Rinehart described Perez as a career criminal with 10 felony convictions.
Kathryn Moore, one of Perez's attorneys, told jurors Perez's methamphetamine use was a reason for the crime. She said Perez probably used methamphetamine to cope with his abusive childhood. She urged jurors to show mercy.
Joshua Robinson, deputy prosecutor, had the final words for jurors before their deliberation. He described Perez as a terror to the community.
"If Oscar gets what he deserves, then he gets life," he said.
The judge ordered Perez not to have any contact with Gonzalez.
Perez's legal troubles aren't over. He's charged in another criminal case with kidnapping, aggravated assault on a family or household member, aggravated assault and domestic battering. A hearing is scheduled for 8 a.m. April 29.
Metro on 03/30/2019