Jury finds man guilty of stabbing 16-year-old Chino Valley student 7 times
Oct 8, 2023, 8:18 AM
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(Google Maps)
PHOENIX — A 31-year-old man was found guilty of murder for stabbing a 16-year-old student seven times in a 2018 dispute over a girl.
According to a release, Donovan Larriba-Tucker took steps to premeditate the attack, fabricate an alibi and even alter his appearance in an attempt to get away with the brutal crime.
The 16-year-old Chino Valley High School student was described as a bystander and witnesses testified that he was yelling out that he had nothing to do with the initial altercation while the stabbing took place.
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A community-wide manhunt was initiated for Larriba-Tucker and he was eventually found the following day.
“The witnesses displayed great courage during trial,” prosecutor Kristen Sharifi said in the release. “They were all children at the time of the murder, and had to relive the tragic and brutal killing of their friend.”
A Yavapai County jury returned the verdict on Friday and sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 9.
Larriba-Tucker is facing a mandatory life sentence without the possibility of parole.
Should he be sentenced to death, he would become the Arizona Department of Corrections’ 113th inmate on death row.
