ORLANDO, Fla. – A former Stetson University basketball player accused of shooting a gun at a motorist agreed to a plea deal, under which he will serve a one-year probated sentence.
Investigators said Grant Lozoya, while in a car, fired a pellet gun at another car in March 2017 near the Lee Road exit in Orange County, damaging Damon Herota's Audi.
Herota told News 6 the state attorney assigned to the case didn't return his calls, and it wasn't until Monday morning -- the day Lozoya's trial was to begin -- that he found out the case had been settled in a plea deal.
"The assistant state attorney promised me that she was going to take it to trial, that she had my back," he said. "She did nothing."
The deal reduces the three felony charges Lozoya was facing to one misdemeanor: unlawful display of a firearm.
News 6 contacted State Attorney Aramis Ayala to find out what happened and why Herota was not contacted about the plea deal.
It didn't take her long to contact Herota directly.
"I've been made aware of your case and the inappropriate resolution of the case," Ayala said in a voicemail message left on Herota's phone.
She also responded to News 6 and said she's started an investigation into the way Herota's case was handled.
"In my office, victims of crime will have a voice," she said in a statement to News 6. "Any additional measures following the investigation will be taken."
Lozoya was sentenced to one year of probation, 100 hours of community service and restitution for the damage he caused.
According to Stetson Univeristy, Lozoya is no longer a player there.
He is now playing for Pitt State University in Pennsylvania.