Defendant found guilty of shooting and killing young mother in Denver

DENVER — A defendant who was 14 when he was charged with a co-defendant accused of shooting and killing a woman following a fender bender in Denver has been found guilty of murder.

On Friday afternoon, the Denver District Attorney’s Office announced that Remi Cordova was convicted by a jury of first-degree murder and attempted first-degree murder.

On February 20, 2021, Pamela Cabriales, 32, was involved in a fender-bender crash with Cordova and co-defendant Neshan Johnson, who was 18 at the time, while driving westbound on W. Colfax Street near Interstate 25. a Honda. The district attorney’s office said Johnson “acted as the getaway driver” while Cordova, who was in the front passenger seat, got out of the car and shot Cabriales with a high-powered assault rifle after the minor crash.

The defendants then fled the scene.

Cabriales died from his injuries.

“We are all devastated,” says longtime friend Mayra Zambrano. he told Denver7 in February 2021. “He was such a wonderful person that we can’t see our lives without him.”

Learn more about their loved ones in our 2021 report below.

Family members call on Denver DA for justice after young mother dies in roadside shooting in Colfax

During the investigation, police found eight bullet marks on his windshield, according to a probable cause affidavit.

Denver police were able to connect Honda to the previous night’s shooting at a McDonald’s on W. Alameda, in which a suspect fired three times into the restaurant. The license plate of the car, which was reflected on security cameras, was also captured. According to the probable cause statement, it was stolen from Aurora.

Police spotted the Honda the night after the shooting at Colfax and I-25 and executed a maneuver to stop the driver on S. Tejon Street near W. Byers Place. Police said an adult and two children fled on foot, but all three were taken into custody. Police found 16 live .22 caliber ammunition and one .223 caliber bullet casing in the shed where Johnson was hiding. They also found two AR-15 rifles in the backseat of the Honda.

On March 1, 2021, the Denver District Attorney’s Office announced formal charges against Cordova and Johnson. Both faced charges of first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder and more.

Cordova was charged and tried as an adult due to the seriousness of the case. On Friday, a jury found him guilty of both murder and attempted murder. The attempted murder charge stemmed from the driver behind Cabriales’ car, according to the district attorney’s office. That driver was not injured.

Cordova’s sentencing will be given on December 12. Because he was a juvenile at the time of the shooting, he faces a maximum sentence of life in prison with the possibility of parole after 40 years, the district attorney’s office said.

“I am so grateful to the jury for returning this fair verdict, which I hope will provide some comfort and a sense of justice to all who knew and loved Pamela Cabriales. This was a completely senseless and cold-blooded murder, and now Remi Cordova is being held accountable,” said Denver District Attorney Beth McCann. “I want to thank the prosecutors, investigators, and victim advocates in my office, as well as the Denver Police Department detectives whose extraordinary work led to today’s verdict.”

Denver jury in March 2023 found Johnson guilty two counts of second-degree murder, one count of attempted manslaughter, one count of attempted assault, one count of vehicular eluding and one count of accessory to a crime. On June 30, 2023, sentenced to 35 years in prison In the Department of Corrections and 14 years on parole.