Man Who Shot 2 In Aurora Found Guilty, Gets 2 Life Sentences

CENTENNIAL, CO -- A man was convicted and sentenced Friday to two life sentences in the 2016 deaths of two unarmed men in an an Aurora apartment. An Arapahoe County jury found Kenneth Kaminga, 37, guilty of first degree murder after deliberation in the shooting deaths of Aaron Williams, 35, and Javier Gaytan, 36, a statement from the 18th Judicial District Attorney's office said.

Arapahoe District Court Judge Patricia Herron sentenced Kaminga to two life sentences in prison without the possibility of parole, the mandatory sentence for first-degree murder by Colorado statute. The sentences will be served consecutively.

“The murder of these two men was utterly senseless. Those who murder should expect to lose a lifetime of liberty. I am proud of the top shelf work of the Aurora Police Department and the Parker Police Department and the expert prosecutors who continue to selflessly serve this community,” Herron said in a statement.

On May 22, 2016, Kaminga called a dispatcher to say he had shot two men in the head at the Sunrise Apartments at 15573 E. 13th Ave. in Aurora.

Kaminga had left the scene, and officers in Parker apprehended him near the home where had been living with a friend. Kaminga told investigators he was an acquaintance of Williams, who brought Gaytan to the apartment. The men had been drinking together.

At some point, Kaminga said he became fearful the two were going to steal a gun he had recently purchased. He shot Gaytan in the back of the head, then he shot Williams in the face, according to the district attorney's statement.

“We all want to believe that people die for a reason. It makes us feel safer to believe that is always the case,” Chief Deputy District Attorney Brian Sugioka told the jury during closing arguments. “Javier Gaytan and Aaron Williams died for no other reason than that the defendant wanted them dead. Their murders were utterly senseless.”

Added Deputy District Attorney Laura Robilotta: “I am hopeful that the jury’s guilty verdicts on both counts of first-degree murder will help in the healing process of their families, friends, and loved ones. I am grateful that justice prevailed today.”

Image: Kenneth Kaminga via Arapahoe County District Attorney