Antioch landlord pleads no contest in tenant’s killing
Marc Siegel shot and killed 43-year-old Michael Moreno while the two argued inside their Antioch home, according to police.
MARTINEZ — An Antioch landlord has pleaded no contest to voluntary manslaughter in the shooting death of his tenant/roommate, and is expected to receive a 13-year prison term in August, authorities said.
Marc Siegel, 46, pleaded no contest in June to killing 43-year-old Michael Moreno. The shooting occurred in May 2020, inside the Antioch home where Siegel lived and had been renting a room to Moreno.
According to police, Moreno was planning to move out of the residence on the day of the shooting.
Moreno was shot and killed around 8:30 a.m. on May 18, 2020, at their residence on the 1900 block of Iron Peak Court. Police said at the time that the two argued and that Siegel produced a gun and shot Moreno at least once. He died before emergency responders got there.
Moreno was a military veteran who ran a martial arts studio in Pittsburg, known as the California Combat Academy. He taught self-defense techniques to adults and children.
Siegel was initially charged with murder and use of a firearm and faced a life sentence with the possibility of parole if convicted. In exchange for his no-contest plea to manslaughter, prosecutors dismissed the murder charge.
Siegel’s sentencing has been set for Aug. 4. In the meantime he remains in custody in Contra Costa County.