This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A jury convicted a Utah man of murder Friday for shooting an acquaintance in Riverdale last year.
Luciano Gabriel Silva, 21, was found guilty of murder, a first degree felony, as well as possession of a dangerous weapon by a restricted person and two counts of obstructing justice, both second degree felonies. He faces up to life in prison.
Silva shot and killed 25-year-old Horacio Mendez Sanchez on Sept. 13, 2015, while the two were walking near the Weber River Parkway.
During the five-day trial, Deputy Weber County Attorney Branden Miles said there was no justification for Silva to shoot a man he knew was unarmed. He posited that the murder may have been sparked by Sanchez listening to music that offended Silva, who was a member of the Nortenos street gang.
But defense attorney Sean Druyon argued that the shot was fired in self-defense. Silva and Sanchez, he said, left a Riverdale home on the night of the shooting to buy drugs. When the dealer didn't show, Sanchez asked to see Silva's gun, pointed it at him and demanded his money, Druyon said.
After a brief struggle, he added, Silva knocked the gun from Sanchez's hand, grabbed it off the ground and fired it at Sanchez.
A Riverdale resident found Sanchez's body early the next morning.
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