Family fights to keep the man who killed their son in prison

By Lesley Marin, Matthew Rodriguez

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    ORANGE COUNTY, California (KCAL) — An Orange County family is fighting to keep the man who killed their son behind bars after learning that he is eligible for parole in July.

Nikolay Osokin and his girlfriend Anya Varfolomeeva were killed in November 2021. They were driving along the 405 in Seal Beach when Oscar Ortega-Anguiano crashed into them at nearly 100 mph.

“They were instantly, basically, burned alive in their car,” father Pavel Osokin said.

Ortega-Anguiano was sentenced to 10 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to two counts of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated. He was drunk and high when he killed the two teens in November 2021. Ortega-Anguiano, a Mexican national, has been deported twice in the past decade, once in 2016 and again in 2018. He’s also been convicted of grand theft, vehicle theft and false imprisonment, according to court records.

According to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, he’s eligible for parole in July after serving roughly three years in state prison. He also received 334 days of pre-sentence credits for time served while awaiting sentencing. CDCR added that he was also eligible for credit-earning opportunities while incarcerated.

In its statement, CDCR added that, as required by law, July 2025 would be Ortega-Anguiano’s “earliest possible release date.” According to its website, CDCR defines earliest possible release date as: “the date determinately-sentenced offenders will be released based on the sentence imposed by the court, less any applicable credits.”

A determinate-sentenced offender is someone who has been sentenced to a fixed term, for example, 10 years. For perspective, federal prisoners are eligible for parole after serving one-third of their term, according to the U.S. Parole Commission, which is part of the Department of Justice.

“I’ve never heard a story about someone getting a third of their sentence for killing two young kids, and being a convicted criminal and being illegal,” Osokin said. “I don’t know. I’m lost.”

Ortega-Anguiano’s possible release quickly turned into a political showdown with the newly appointed US Attorney Bill Essayli, tweeting that his office has filed an immigration charge against the Mexican national.

My office has filed a felony immigration charge against this defendant. He faces up to 20 years in federal prison if convicted for 8 USC 1326. If the State of California will not seek the full measure of justice against this individual, the @TheJusticeDept will,” Essayli tweeted.

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s press office replied to the story after it aired on Fox News and pivoted blame to the Orange County District Attorney’s Office

“After being deported in 2013, this individual unlawfully re-entered the US & committed heinous crimes,” Newsom’s office tweeted. “A GOP DA then gave him a plea deal instead of pursuing 2nd-degree murder. CDCR will again coordinate with ICE—as they have w/ 10,000+ inmates—to transfer him before release.”

In response, OC DA Todd Spitzer denied offering a plea deal and said the defendant pleaded guilty to “the court.” He said his team pushed for the maximum sentence but did not convince the judge.

“California’s creative concoction of good time, education, and other credits has resulted in criminals being released quicker than ever before, fulfilling Governor Newsom’s plot to empty California’s prisons and put dangerous and violent felons back on the street,” Spitzer said. “This is not a failure by the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.”

Osokin said that he’s fearful that Ortega-Anguiano would return to the United States after being deported, similar to what happened in 2016 and 2018.

“Doesn’t matter. He’s going to be free. He’s going to be free in Mexico, here, or anywhere,” Osokin said. “[I want] him to stay in prison forever for the rest of his life.”

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