Prosecutors added gang enhancement allegations Friday for two men who are charged with murder in the drive-by shooting death of 3-year-old Carlos Nava in East Oakland last year.

Lawrence Denard, 27, the suspected shooter, and 23-year-old Willie Torrence, the suspected driver, both of Oakland, were already charged with one count of murder and two counts of attempted murder for the shooting in the 6400 block of International Boulevard at about 1:10 p.m. on Aug. 8, 2011.

Oakland police said from the beginning that they believed the incident was gang-related and that Denard's intended targets were two adult males who were wounded but survived. Carlos and his family, who were shopping at the time, had no connection to the two male adult victims.

Alameda County Deputy District Attorney Steve Dalporto said Friday that there have been gang implications all along. His office waited until now to add gang allegations because it wanted an Oakland police gang expert to confirm the alleged gang connections of Denard and Torrence, he said.

The allegation added Friday is that Denard and Torrence carried out the shooting for the benefit of a criminal street gang.

If they're convicted of the gang allegations as well as the murder and attempted murder charges, the gang allegations would result in a mandatory sentence of up to life in prison that they would have to serve in addition to and consecutive to their sentence for murder and attempted murder.

Attorneys for Denard and Torrence objected to the gang allegation being added, saying this isn't the appropriate time to amend the criminal complaint against the two men.

Annie Beles, who represents Denard, said the gang allegations could be added at the end of the preliminary examination for the two men if gang evidence is introduced during the hearing.

But Alameda County Superior Court Judge Carrie Panetta said, "The problem is that the judge might not let the gang expert testify if there's no gang allegation."

Panetta said she will allow prosecutors to add the gang allegations and said they "are no surprise" to the defense because they've been discussed for several months, allowing the defense adequate time to contest them.

Denard and Torrence pleaded not guilty today to the amended criminal complaint against them.

Their preliminary hearing, which has been postponed several times, was rescheduled today to Jan. 7. Panetta said testimony in the case won't begin until the following day.

The purpose of the hearing will be to determine if there's enough evidence against Denard and Torrence to have them ordered to stand trial.

Denard was arrested in Pittsburg on Aug. 9, 2011, the day after the shooting. He has prior convictions for grand theft and possession of a firearm by a felon.

Torrence was arrested in Las Vegas on Aug. 12, 2011, and was extradited to Alameda County several weeks later.

Torrence was on parole for violating his probation for a previous conviction on illegal gun charges.

Oakland police said they believe Torrence was the driver in the shooting.

According to a probable cause statement filed in court by detectives, Torrence gave a taped statement to Oakland homicide investigators denying any involvement in the shooting.

In addition to his prior conviction on illegal gun charges, Torrence also was convicted of robbery when he was a juvenile and declared a ward of the juvenile court system, according to court records.