A Denver man will spend up to 38 years in prison after pleading guilty to fatally shooting a man who asked him for food.
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Rafael Acosta-Hernandez, 25, pleaded guilty in May to shooting Leonel Silva-Perez, 25. Acosta-Hernandez was selling food out of his pickup truck in the 2600 block of North Zuni Street and became angry when Silva-Perez asked for a free meal in March 2025.
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“One year later, Leonel Silva-Perez’s murder remains impossible to explain. After simply asking for food, he was chased down an alley and shot numerous times by Rafael Acosta-Hernandez. This sentence ensures that Acosta-Hernandez will pay a heavy price, as he should, for his senseless and destructive actions,” Denver District Attorney John Walsh said in a statement.
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