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Man sentenced to 30 years for killing Valencia College student

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — A man will spend the next 30 years in prison for his role in the death of an Orange County Valencia College student.

Eddie Viteri-Perez, 23, was sentenced Wednesday morning as part of a plea deal in the death of Michael Ault.

Investigators said when the robbery failed, Gonzalez shot Ault in the chest.

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Text messages show Gonzalez and Perez planned to rob Ault and a friend, but, when Ault fought back, Gonzalez shot him, slashed his tires and then left.

Viteri-Perez fled the country and was captured by U.S. Marshals in the Dominican Republic last year.

Ault’s mother said the murder destroyed her family.

“He was on the path to becoming a contributing member of society and to have his life needlessly taken away in cold-blooded murder has destroyed my life, the life of his family, his sister, his only sibling,” said Jennifer Sanders.

Gonzalez was sentenced to life in prison in 2015.

Channel 9's Michael Lopardi is following this developing story. He'll have more on Eyewitness News at 4 p.m.