An Aurora man who admitted he tried to run down two women because he believed they were lesbians is heading to prison for 20 years. Vitalie Oprea was sentenced Wednesday after pleading guilty to attempted first-degree murder after deliberation with a violent-crime sentence enhancer. The 18th Judicial District announced the sentence, which stems from a February 2023 attack near Grandview High School that left the two women badly shaken but physically unharmed.
The attack, according to prosecutors
Prosecutors say it started on Feb. 19, 2023, when Oprea took his parents' vehicle without permission and spotted the women at the corner of E. Arapahoe Road and S. Liverpool Street. Witnesses told investigators he yelled at the pair, made obscene gestures, then whipped his vehicle into a U-turn through oncoming traffic.
From there, according to the case file, he drove over a curb and across a grassy area toward the women near Grandview High School. The women managed to climb into a Ram pickup, but Oprea rammed the truck with his vehicle, then got out, kicked the passenger side, and tried to pull one of the women from the cab.
The 18th Judicial District said Wednesday that Oprea will serve 20 years in the Colorado Department of Corrections following his guilty plea, as reported by CBS News Colorado.
Arrest and prosecutors' comments
Oprea ran from the scene but was arrested later the same day in Arvada. While officers were taking him into custody, he told investigators, "I drove at the women because I saw them kissing and they were lesbians and I wanted to kill them." That statement, prosecutors said, laid bare the bias behind the attack.
Deputy District Attorney Lauren Agee said the women "did nothing to provoke this violence" and emphasized that bias-driven attacks will be met with accountability, according to CBS News Colorado.
Court records and docket listings
Public court dockets show multiple Arapahoe County case entries under Oprea's name, documenting arraignments and status hearings tied to the 2023 incident, per the Colorado Judicial Branch online docket. Those listings line up with the filings and court appearances associated with the prosecution of the case.
Legal context
Oprea's guilty plea to attempted first-degree murder after deliberation included a violent-crime sentence enhancer, and prosecutors pursued the case as bias-motivated based on his statement about the victims' sexual orientation. Colorado's bias-motivated crimes statute, C.R.S. § 18-9-121, defines bias-motivated offenses to include attacks based on actual or perceived sexual orientation and allows for enhanced penalties and additional remedies.
Prosecutors said the 20-year sentence reflects how seriously the 18th Judicial District treats hate-motivated violence and is meant to send a clear message about accountability for attacks driven by bias.
