AURORA | A man prosecutors say shot and killed his girlfriend’s former boyfriend in Aurora on Christmas Day 2015 has been sentenced to 18 years in prison.
Phi Hoang Pham, 35, pleaded guilty in January to second-degree murder for the slaying of Cyril Kim, who was 35 when he was killed.
Arapahoe District Court Judge Jeffrey Holmes sentenced Pham Monday.
According to a statement from Arapahoe County prosecutors, Kim was at his former girlfriend’s house in the 20100 block of East Dartmouth Drive that day to visit their son.
Prosecutors said investigators believe Pham and Kim had been drinking and arm wrestling when Pham shot him and stashed the gun in a bag of dog food.
Initially, Pham and his girlfriend told police an intruder shot Kim, prosecutors said. But police didn’t believe that and arrested Pham shortly after the shooting.
“The amount of unanswered questions has been very frustrating for the family of Mr. Kim,” Chief Deputy District Attorney Vicki Klingensmith said during sentencing. “It is appropriate for the defendant to take responsibility for his role in the death of Mr. Kim.”