A 34-year-old woman described by prosecutors as an “enforcer” is returning to prison after authorities say she chased down, beat and shot a man during a robbery in Pasco.
Guadalupe A. Sanchez pleaded guilty to second-degree assault and second-degree robbery in connection with an attack on a 46-year-old man. Investigators said Sanchez and two of her nieces left the victim with a broken nose, welts on his head and a graze wound on his elbow from a bullet.
Sanchez’s criminal record stretches back more than nine years and includes multiple felony convictions. Among them is a 2018 case in which she was convicted of rendering criminal assistance after helping two men conceal the body of a West Richland mother. Court records also list convictions for assault, witness tampering, harassment and bail jumping.
Prosecutors said Sanchez faced a prison sentence in the range of six to eight years. Judge Jacqueline Stam followed the state’s recommendation and imposed a sentence at the low end of that range, along with 18 months of probation.
Her nieces — Evenie M. Landa-Riojas, 22, and Elisett Landa-Riojas, 21 — previously pleaded guilty to unlawful imprisonment, fourth-degree assault and criminal mischief. Each received a 46-day jail sentence.
Pasco robbery and assault
Sanchez and her nieces admitted they attacked the man inside a home on Marie Street on May 15, according to court documents.
Investigators said Sanchez pressed a small white pistol to the victim’s chest and warned him that she could kill him. Her nieces allegedly claimed gang ties and told the victim he “didn’t know who he was messing with,” before the assault escalated. Police said it’s unclear how the women knew him.
The victim and another person ran from the home, but detectives said the women chased after them and kept attacking outside.
Court documents say Sanchez took the man’s phone while continuing to strike him. Investigators also noted another man was involved.
When the victim fell to the ground, prosecutors said Sanchez aimed the gun and fired, grazing his elbow.
Police found the injured man around 11:45 p.m. near the corner of 18th Avenue and West Henry Street, according to court records.
2018 case
Sanchez was sentenced in 2019 for helping dispose of Michelle Hudnall’s body in the Columbia River in 2018, authorities said.
Hudnall’s remains were later recovered near Carbody Beach, about two months after she was reported missing.
Sanchez and her boyfriend, Benny Rodriguez Lozano Jr., ultimately pleaded guilty to roles connected to Hudnall’s death, according to court records. Sanchez received a sentence of one year and three months. Lozano pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter and was sentenced to 12 years.
A third man, Florentino Jai Castillo, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit first-degree manslaughter and was sentenced to nine years.
Kennewick assault
Court records show Sanchez also pleaded guilty last December to assaulting a woman in a Kennewick trailer and was sentenced to 70 days in jail.
The victim told investigators she found Sanchez armed inside her trailer on Sept. 29 and was then taken to a detached garage about a half-mile away. She reported that Sanchez took her phone and purse and attempted to take a necklace she was wearing.
According to court documents, Sanchez held the woman for roughly eight hours, repeatedly pointing the gun at her and hitting her before the victim managed to escape and call police.
Witness tampering conviction
Sanchez also has a witness tampering conviction tied to threats made against a domestic violence victim, according to court records.
In that case, Ramon Jaimes-Galvez kidnapped a woman at gunpoint in July 2022, beating her and burning her with a heated clothes hanger, investigators said.
Authorities said Jaimes-Galvez contacted Sanchez from jail and asked her to intimidate the victim. Court documents allege Sanchez forced the woman to undress, struck her, and threatened her while armed.
Records say Sanchez released the woman only after she gave a recorded statement recanting allegations against Jaimes-Galvez. Sanchez later pleaded guilty and was sentenced to a year and eight months.
Jaimes-Galvez also pleaded guilty to assault and was sentenced to just under five years in prison.
