55-year-old Rhode Island man sentenced to prison for murdering 44-year-old man at party

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Attorney General Peter Neronha has announced that a Providence man has been sentenced in Providence County Superior Court for the murder of 44-year-old Angel Rodriguez at a Mother’s Day party in 2023.

On Friday, Superior Court Justice Kristin Rodgers sentenced 55-year-old Luis Sepulveda to serve two consecutive life sentences at the Adult Correctional Institutions. Additionally, Judge Rodgers declared the defendant a habitual offender, for which the defendant will serve an additional 10-year non-parolable sentence consecutive to the life sentences.

A jury found the defendant 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.

“These types of cases occur all too often when a person who is prohibited from owning and carrying a gun obtains one,” said Attorney General Neronha. “This defendant senselessly murdered Angel Rodriguez, forever changing the lives of Angel’s family, friends, and community. Prior to Angel’s murder, this defendant demonstrated a well-documented pattern of violent criminal behavior, and as we know, violence begets violence. While this sentence can’t bring Angel back, I hope it provides some measure of peace for those who cared for him. I am grateful to the Providence Police Department for their collaboration on this case.”

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

That evening, at just after 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 deceased 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 Sepulveda’s car and located five shell casings at the scene. In his statement to police, he 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 his DNA on the firearm.

“Gun violence will never have a place in our community,” said Providence Police Colonel Oscar Perez. “The men and women of the Providence Police Department work tirelessly to bring justice to those who commit violent crimes like this one. I want to thank our officers and our partners in the Attorney General’s Office for their hard work on this difficult case.”

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