A San Antonio man facing multiple felony charges pled guilty to the crimes in exchange for prison time.
Adrian Cardenas, 23, pled guilty to attempted capital murder of a police officer, aggravated assault and robbery. Evidence showed that on Oct. 5, 2020, Cardenas was wanted for hitting his ex-girlfriend’s car with his car and assaulting a convenience store clerk during a robbery. When San Antonio police attempted to pull over Cardenas, he ran and opened fire on Officer Arturo Ozuna. A bullet hit the officer’s body worn camera, but the officer fortunately was not hurt. Cardenas was wounded by the officer.
In exchange for his guilty pleas, Cardenas was sentenced to 40 years in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice Institutional Division for the attempted capital murder of a police officer charge. Cardenas received 10 years in prison on each of the other charges. The sentences will run concurrently.
“This defendant’s brazen but failed attempt at avoiding his future prison sentence could have had a much different outcome. Officer Ozuna was incredibly lucky that his body camera stopped the bullet. Since his arrest, the defendant avoided accepting responsibility for his actions until Monday with the jury in the hallway. Our community is safer without him on our streets,” said Bexar County District Attorney Joe Gonzales.
Assistant District Attorney Gretchen Flader of the Criminal Trial Division prosecuted this case in the 226th District Court. The San Antonio Police Department investigated the case.