An Aurora man who was 18 at the time of his arrest has been ordered to spend 18 years in state prison after admitting he opened fire on a car carrying two adults and three children in Aurora in 2025. The April 12, 2025 shooting left two adults wounded and a child grazed by a bullet while they were driving through the city with three kids in the vehicle. The sentence was imposed on Wednesday in Adams County District Court after Christopher Campos-Anguiano pleaded guilty to attempted murder.
Sentence and plea
According to 9News, Campos-Anguiano pleaded guilty to one count of second-degree attempted murder and one count of using a weapon during the commission of a violent crime. A judge then sentenced him to an 18-year term in the Colorado Department of Corrections, court records show.
How prosecutors say it unfolded
Prosecutors say the victims had set up a meeting with the suspect for a transaction. After Campos-Anguiano allegedly took the items and drove off, the victims followed his vehicle, and shots were fired at their car on Airport Boulevard near East Colfax Avenue, according to a press release from the 17th Judicial District Attorney’s Office. The office initially filed multiple counts, including attempted first-degree murder, assault and weapons charges, before the case was resolved under the plea agreement.
Arrest and injuries
Aurora police located the suspect vehicle a short time later and stopped it near South Peoria Street and East Mississippi Avenue, where officers took Campos-Anguiano into custody without incident, officials told Denver7. Early reports and affidavits indicate the male victim was shot in the abdomen, the woman in the front seat was struck by the same bullet that partially penetrated her skin, and a 12-year-old in the back seat suffered a graze wound. The other children did not sustain serious physical injuries, according to CBS Colorado.
Legal note
The original criminal complaint listed counts of first-degree attempted murder, but court records show Campos-Anguiano ultimately pleaded guilty to a second-degree attempted murder charge along with a weapons enhancement as part of the final disposition. Under Colorado law, attempts to commit felonies are governed by C.R.S. 18-2-101, and sentencing ranges for felony classes are set out in C.R.S. 18-1.3-401, which provides the framework for a judge’s sentencing decision.
Adams County case records list the prosecution as case number 2025CR876, and the district attorney’s April 21, 2025, filing outlines additional details about the original charges. Authorities have not publicly released the names of the victims.
