Man sentenced in 2021 Lents neighborhood convenience store shooting

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — A Portland man has been sentenced more than five years after fatally shooting another in the Lents neighborhood.

Multnomah County Circuit Court Judge David Rees sentenced Leonard Lonell Edwards to 10 years in prison and three years of post-prison supervision on Friday, according to the District Attorney’s Office. This follows a grand jury finding the 23-year-old man guilty of first-degree manslaughter and unlawful use of a weapon with a firearm earlier in September.

The conviction is in connection to the 2021 killing of Jonathon “Johnny” Polanco. KOIN 6 previously reported that the 30-year-old man was shot in the parking lot of a convenience store in the 4500 block of Southeast 92nd Avenue just before 10 p.m. on Aug. 20 of that year.

He was later pronounced dead after being transported to a hospital, according to the Portland Police Bureau.

His brother said Polanco’s significant other was being “jumped” at the convenience store on the night of the incident. He alleged a stranger shot him as he tried to break up the fight, which police said was captured in a video that circulated on social media.

Officials later identified then-18-year-old Edwards and then-19-year-old Deshondra Rayford as suspects in Polanco’s death. They also cited a third suspect whose name was not released due to her being a minor.

Rayford surrendered herself to authorities in November 2021, while Edwards remained on the run. Months later, the now-defunct Crime Stoppers of Oregon reported that investigators believed Edwards knew he was a wanted suspect and was “actively avoiding” his arrest.

He was not taken into custody until the U.S. Marshal’s Fugitive Task Force apprehended him years later in July 2024.

Edwards was first charged with second-degree murder, third-degree assault and unlawful use of a weapon with a firearm. He originally pleaded not guilty to all charges.