53-year-old New York man convicted of killing another man at family gathering in Providence

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Attorney General Peter Neronha has announced that a man has been found guilty in Providence County Superior Court for the murder of 44-year-old Angel Rodriguez in 2023.

On Thursday, following the conclusion of a 7-day trial before Superior Court Justice Kristin Roberts, a jury found 53-year-old Luis Sepulveda of Bronx, New York guilty of one count of first-degree murder, one count of discharge of a firearm resulting in death, one count of carrying a pistol without a license, one count of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, one count of assault with a dangerous weapon, one count of using firearm during a violent crime, and one count of possessing a large capacity feeding device.

“This case is a tragic example of what happens when firearms get into the hands of those who are ready and willing to use them,” said Attorney General Neronha. “Behind every death caused by senseless gun violence, there is a family and a community that will never be the same. Angel’s life was taken too soon, and his loss will forever impact all those that cared for him. I am grateful to the Providence Police Department and the prosecutors in my office for their excellent work in this case.”

During the trial, the State proved that on May 14, 2023, Sepulveda shot Rodriguez while leaving a family Mother’s Day party in Providence.

That evening, at approximately 11:00 p.m., Providence Police responded to a report of a shooting on Manton Avenue. Upon arrival at the scene, officers found Rodriguez on the ground, suffering from a gunshot wound to the chest. The victim received CPR at the scene before rescue personnel transported him to Rhode Island Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 11:36 p.m.

Both Sepulveda and the victim were attending a family Mother’s Day party at a home on Manton Avenue. According to witness testimony, the defendant and Angel argued earlier in the day, but resolved that dispute peacefully. Later that evening, a fight broke out in the garage of the home, during which Sepulveda pulled a gun out of his bag, shot two rounds in the air, and then shot the victim in the chest. The defendant subsequently fled the scene in a grey minivan. Rhode Island State Police troopers stopped the vehicle on Route 95 South and placed Sepulveda in custody.

Troopers found a handgun in the driver’s door of the defendant’s car and located five shell casings at the scene. In his statement to police, Sepulveda admitted to shooting the gun. A ballistic analysis confirmed that the five shell casings found at the scene were fired from the handgun seized from the defendant’s car. A primer gunshot residue analysis confirmed the presence of residue on Sepulveda’s hands, and a DNA analysis by the Rhode Island Department of Health found evidence of the defendant’s DNA on the firearm.

“Gun violence has no place in our community,” said Providence Police Colonel Oscar L. Perez Jr. “The men and women of the Providence Police Department work every day to bring justice to those who endanger the lives of our community members. I commend the work of our officers and our partners in the Attorney General’s Office for their investigation and prosecution of this case.”

Special Assistant Attorneys General Daniel C. Hopkins and Edward G. Mullaney of the Attorney General’s Office and Detective Alicia Hersperger of the Providence Police Department led the investigation and prosecution of the case.