College student's kidnapper gets 50 years in prison

EDINBURG — One of three men accused in the April kidnapping of a 23-year-old college student was sentenced Wednesday to 50 years in prison.

Efrain Ozuna, 30, admitted to forcing the woman into a truck at South Texas College’s Mid-Valley Campus in Weslaco. He and his co-defendants drove her to several locations before eventually releasing her that same day in a wooded area south of Donna.

According to a criminal complaint filed in their case, the men later told police they targeted her because they thought she looked wealthy and they hoped to extract a ransom from her family or friends.

Once they realized she didn’t have any money, Ozuna and one of his accomplices — Benito Zaragoza, 22 — sexually assaulted her and released her, the document states.

Ozuna’s sentence comes as part of a plea agreement with prosecutors. Zaragoza and a third co-defendant — Martin Rosas, 33 — have also pleaded guilty and received 30- and 25-year sentences, respectively.

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Monitor staff writers Jeremy Roebuck compiled this report.