A career criminal who lured a drug customer to a convenience store to settle a bad debt was sentenced to life in prison Wednesday for stabbing the man to death.
Lawrence Arellano, 40, was sentenced in Jefferson County District Court for first-degree murder after deliberation and conspiracy to commit murder for the January 2017 stabbing death of James Miller.
A jury convicted Arellano, who has seven prior felony convictions, following four days of testimony on June 7, according to a news release by Pam Russell, spokeswoman for District Attorney Peter Weir.
Arrellano’s co-defendant Charles Joseph Martinez, 34, was sentenced to 28 years in prison in February for a conviction of second-degree murder.
On Jan. 4, 2017, Martinez met Miller at a convenience store in the 1100 block of South Sheridan Boulevard. Arellano hid in the darkness until Miller arrived and then stabbed him in the chest. Miller died from his injuries.
