Sixteen-year-old Alicia Martinez might be alive today had Manuel Gonzales not left her alone with the man accused of killing her, a Denver District Court judge said Monday.
But Gonzales obliged in October 2010 when Edward Timothy Romero, 27, asked to be alone with the teenager as a party at Romero’s house wound down.
And when Romero later admitted to Gonzales, 21, that he had killed her, Gonzales lied to cover up the crime.
Alicia was later found dismembered in Romero’s garage.
Judge Shelley Gilman sentenced Gonzales to two years’ probation and 90 days in jail for his role in Alicia’s death. She noted it was a light sentence and that Gonzales has agreed to testify against Romero at trial.
“The way in which Ms. Martinez’s body was treated, he had the opportunity to stop that,” Gilman said.
“He knew about this murder before anyone.”
Gonzales pleaded guilty June 27 to attempted accessory to a crime, a felony.
