Left inset: Austin Eis (Ventura County Sheriff’s Office). Right inset: Wesley Welling (GoFundMe). Background: The aftermath of Austin Eis’ violent crime spree in Ventura County, Cali. (KTLA/YouTube).
A California man with an “admiration for mass murderers” has confessed to going on an hourslong rampage in 2023 that ended with numerous people in the hospital and a 15-year-old dead after he mowed the teen down with his car, along with several others, “out of personal frustrations,” prosecutors say.
Austin Eis, 26, pleaded guilty last week to nearly a dozen felony charges connected to his Ventura County crime spree, which included stabbing and pepper-spraying a Walmart greeter and running over a group of students from his former high school — Westlake High School in West Lake Village — with his car, according to the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office.
Wesley Welling, the teen who died, was standing with the students on a sidewalk when Eis “intentionally drove into” them with his vehicle on April 18, 2023, in an attempt to cause a mass casualty event. Three others were hospitalized with “severe injuries requiring surgeries and extensive medical treatment,” the DA’s office said Friday.
According to prosecutors, Eis had come from his parents house, where he broke in and stole multiple weapons while wielding a “replica firearm” and a knife after stabbing a Walmart greeter in Simi Valley.
“The series of violent events began shortly before 3 p.m. when Eis entered a Walmart in Simi Valley and assaulted a store greeter by spitting, pepper spraying and stabbing him multiple times,” the DA’s office said in a Friday press release announcing Eis’ conviction. “He then dragged another employee across the store.”
After going and getting the additional weapons, Eis admitted to “intentionally” targeting and driving into the group of Westlake students.
“Witnesses reported that Eis accelerated toward the students before striking them with his vehicle, which overturned after impact with a bus stop,” the DA’s office said. “Eis admitted to targeting the students out of personal frustrations and his desire to commit mass violence.”
While investigating the rampage, authorities learned that Eis had a dark obsession with death and committing acts of violence.
“Investigators discovered a long history of violent threats, including admiration for mass murderers and adherence to extremist ideologies,” the DA’s office said. “Text messages and communications showed that he had expressed intentions to carry out acts of violence for years.”
Senior Deputy District Attorney Amber Lee, who prosecuted the case, said in a statement that getting someone like Eis off the streets through a plea deal was something that happened to “reflect the full scope and severity of the defendant’s depraved actions” for a possible sentence of 85 years to life.
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“The sentence will not only reflect his premeditated and calculated actions after years of homicidal ideations, but also the horrific nature of the crime spree he unleashed on innocent members of our community,” Lee said. “This disposition allows the dozens of victims to close this chapter of their lives without reliving the trauma through courtroom testimony.”
Eis pleaded guilty to 10 felony charges total, including first-degree murder and attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon, and false imprisonment by violence. He’s due to be sentenced on April 14.
“The defendant committed acts of terror and extreme violence that took the life of a teenage boy and shattered the lives of many others,” said District Attorney Nasarenko in a statement. “While no number of guilty pleas will ever close the anguish of the victims and their families, they will ensure the defendant’s removal from society and impose accountability for his horrendous crimes.”
