Troy Lamar Fox, 34, has been sentenced to 358 years to life in prison for the murder of 17-year-old Briana Soto and the attempted murder of four others. The sentence was handed down on Thursday by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, marking the end of a case that shocked the Long Beach community.
Fox was convicted in March 2024 for the first-degree murder of Briana Soto, who was tragically shot and killed on her way home from work. On March 26, 2024, Soto was walking near 11th Street and Lewis Avenue in Long Beach when she was shot just a short distance from her home.
At the time of the shooting, Soto had been speaking to her mother on the phone, and her mother even heard the fatal shots. She tried to call her daughter back, but a man answered the phone, and she could not understand what he was saying.
Soto was rushed to the hospital in critical condition but passed away three days later. Surveillance footage from the area showed the suspect, a man dressed in black with a mask, walking in the vicinity minutes before the shooting. Detectives believed the shooter fled the scene immediately after the shooting and did not know the victim.
Two weeks after Soto’s death, on April 9, 2024, Fox attempted to kill four others in a separate incident. Fox fired at a vehicle with three minors and one adult inside on Pine Avenue in Long Beach. In July 2024, Fox was arrested with a minor in possession of six firearms.
While Fox was in jail, detectives secured an arrest warrant for Soto’s murder, and Fox was charged with attempted murder for the April shooting. During his trial, no clear motive for Soto’s murder was presented, leaving many questions unanswered.
At the sentencing, Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman emphasized that the sentence represented a step toward justice. “Briana Soto had her whole life ahead of her — she was getting ready for her prom, her 18th birthday, and graduation,” Hochman said. “Today’s sentence ensures the person who stole her future will never be free to harm another innocent person.”
Fox’s prior criminal history includes convictions for attempted robbery and making criminal threats. Despite the tragic loss of Briana Soto and the trauma caused by Fox’s actions, the sentence guarantees that Fox will never be able to harm anyone else again.
