Luis Sepulveda also received a 10-year non-parolable sentence as a habitual offender.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — A Providence man was sentenced April 10 to two consecutive life terms for killing 44-year-old Angel Rodriguez during a Mother’s Day family party on Manton Avenue in 2023, state prosecutors said.

The sentence closes the trial phase of a case that began with a late-night shooting at a family gathering and ended with a jury finding Luis Sepulveda, 55, guilty of first-degree murder and several firearms counts. Superior Court Justice Kristin E. Rodgers also declared Sepulveda a habitual offender and ordered him to serve an added 10-year non-parolable sentence after the life terms.

Prosecutors said Sepulveda and Rodriguez were among relatives and guests gathered May 14, 2023, at a home on Manton Avenue. Witnesses told investigators the two men argued earlier in the day, then settled the dispute without violence. Hours later, as the party stretched into the night, a fight broke out in the garage. Prosecutor Daniel C. Hopkins said in court that Sepulveda had brought a loaded gun across state lines before the party. “He should spend the rest of his life behind bars, no question about it,” Hopkins said.

Police were called to Manton Avenue at about 11:04 p.m. for a report of a shooting. Officers found Rodriguez on the ground with a gunshot wound to the chest. People at the scene and emergency crews tried to save him, and rescue personnel took him to Rhode Island Hospital. He was pronounced dead at 11:36 p.m. Prosecutors said Sepulveda fired two rounds into the air before turning the gun toward Rodriguez. A sentencing memorandum said Sepulveda made a threat during the confrontation before the fatal shot.

After the shooting, prosecutors said, Sepulveda left in a gray minivan. Rhode Island State Police troopers later stopped the vehicle on Route 95 South and took him into custody. Troopers found a handgun in the driver’s door. Investigators recovered five shell casings at the Manton Avenue scene, and ballistic testing matched all five to the handgun seized from the minivan. Police also said primer gunshot residue was found on Sepulveda’s hands, and DNA testing by the Rhode Island Department of Health found evidence of his DNA on the firearm.

The jury returned guilty verdicts Oct. 23, 2025, after a seven-day trial in Providence County Superior Court. Sepulveda was convicted of first-degree murder, discharge of a firearm resulting in death, carrying a pistol without a license, possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, assault with a dangerous weapon, using a firearm during a violent crime and possessing a large-capacity feeding device. The habitual offender finding added to the sentence because the court found his criminal record met the legal standard for the extra punishment.

Attorney General Peter F. Neronha said the case showed the damage caused when a person barred from having a gun gets one and uses it. Neronha said Rodriguez’s death changed the lives of family members, friends and the wider community. He also said Sepulveda had shown a documented pattern of violent criminal behavior before the shooting. Providence Police Colonel Oscar L. Perez said gun violence has no place in the community and credited officers, detectives and prosecutors for bringing the case through trial and sentencing.

Family members filled the sentencing hearing with accounts of what the killing had taken from them. Some wore large necklaces bearing Rodriguez’s photo as they sat in court. One speaker said the family had known Sepulveda for years and felt betrayed by the shooting. “Who would have ever thought this man we’ve known for so long would betray our family like that and put us through this nightmare?” the speaker said. Another statement described Rodriguez as a strong soul and said he had wanted the chance to become a father.

The courtroom accounts added a human record to the physical evidence jurors had already heard at trial. Family members said the shooting did not end on Manton Avenue, because the memory of that night still enters their daily lives. One attendee said the question of why the fight turned deadly still returns without warning. Prosecutors framed the crime as a sudden act at a family celebration, but the state’s evidence gave jurors a longer chain to consider: the gun, the trip, the fight, the shots, the flight and the forensic match.

For now, Sepulveda is now sentenced to serve the two life terms at the Adult Correctional Institutions, followed by the added 10-year non-parolable term. The next stage is custody under the sentence, with any post-conviction filings to be handled through the courts.

Author note: Last updated May 5, 2026.