A former employee at a Calabasas senior living facility has been sentenced to life in prison nearly three years after allegedly abusing several elderly residents.

In April a jury found Cesar Ulloa guilty of torture and seven counts of elder abuse committed in 2007 at the Calabasas Silverado Senior Living home, which specializes in caring for people with dementia and other memory-impairing diseases.

Ulloa, 21, was sentenced two weeks ago to six years for elder abuse and a life sentence for torture. The victims—three men and one woman—all suffered from dementia and were unable to speak or report the abuse.

The Reseda resident was a caregiver at Silverado between February and November 2007, according to the Los Angeles district attorney’s office.

Dep. District Attorney Robin Allen said Judge Martin Hercovitz sentenced Ulloa after several family members of the victims spoke of their loss and anger. Allen is with the district attorney’s elder abuse unit.

Silverado co-founder and president Loren Shook said they respect the jury’s decision and support the guilty verdict.

He did say that some stories, including one that Ulloa jumped off a dresser onto a client, were “bogus.” But he emphasized that Ulloa was absolutely guilty of abuse and was likely a sociopath, comparing him to serial killer Ted Bundy.

“We had no clue of his actions,” Shook said. “In every way he looked like the model caregiver. He had all the characteristics of a sociopath. No one can determine the problems until they see the trail left behind. That’s how this guy duped us.”

Authorities were alerted after a Silverado employee called 80- year-old Elmore Kittower’s widow and told her that her husband’s death in November 2007 was the result of abuse.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department arrested Ulloa in October 2008 after a yearlong investigation that revealed Kittower had been abused for months before his death.

Silverado shared the story of Ulloa and his abuse at the Assisted Living Association national conference last year and became active in efforts to prevent future cases of elder mistreatment.

“It’s difficult to talk to your peers about things you wish didn’t happen,” Shook said. “But we aren’t going to let the actions of one individual, who in my opinion is very ill, detract us from our company’s purpose of changing people’s lives for the positive. We’ve learned a very painful lesson.”

The retirement home also partnered with UC Irvine to conduct studies about bruising patterns and how to identify abuse.

“The most important thing is our residents’ safety,” Shook said. “We view them as we do our mothers and fathers. This isn’t a business matter. It’s personal. We take it very personally that this kind of thing could happen at one of our facilities.”

Ulloa was first arrested by Malibu/Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station deputies in 2007, but a case wasn’t filed due to insufficient evidence. Ulloa was arrested a year later and the charges stuck.

District attorney spokesperson Jane Robison said Ulloa will serve his six years for abuse, and then begin his life sentence. Robison said it’s up to the Department of Corrections to determine when he’ll be eligible for parole.

Silverado has established an Elmore Kittower Memorial Fund, which was created to provide educational scholarships to Silverado caregivers.