AUGUSTA, Ga. – An Augusta man who made a life out of committing crime is now trying to stop young adults from making the same mistakes he made.

For the past five years Leo Otero has worked closely with Full Circle Refuge Ministry, mentoring teens and using his life as a warning of what happens if they break the law.

“I can remember the day the pages came alive for me. I felt the hardness in my heart melting,” said Leo Otero, former criminal.

After making the headlines as a career criminal for more than a decade, Leo Otero is now making the headlines by trying to help troubled youth before they slip through the cracks and into the prison system.

"It's a myth and it's a lie that gangs are a family. I tell the kids, your friends, they'll ride with you and they'll shoot with you, but they won't do the time with you," said Otero.

Otero started heading down the wrong path when he was 11.

"I started out holding drugs for the older guys. Then, I started transporting drugs from Mexico to the U.S. My first serious offense was armed robbery,” said Otero.

After spending more than 20 years in and out of prison, Otero says at age 38 he decided to put his faith in God and turn his life around.

Now he spends his time reaching out to children before they make his mistake.

“I have a guy that's doing well. He went on to get his GED and is thinking about going to college. I have another kid I was working with for over a year that got out. He committed a crime. Now he's doing 10 years in prison,” said Otero.

Otero says he shares his story so others won't end up living the life he once did.

Otero says he started his own ministry called Crossfire 316 and reaches out to children all over Georgia. Currently he's not only talking to teens, but he's also mentoring a 60-year-old gang member who is trying to get out. He says there is still hope with repeat offenders.