Alexander Pogosyan

Case record — Alexander Pogosyan

Background

Alexander Pogosyan was convicted murderer in the so-called Labor Day Massacre in Aurora.

Pogosyan was 17 at the time of the murders. During the proceedings he was treated as an adult throughout, and the judge stayed that course.

The offence

Investigators believed Pogosyan and his friend Michael Martinez armed themselves with shotguns, put bandanas over their faces and went on a murderous rampage at two Aurora homes on Sept. 7, 1998.

Prosecutors claimed Pogosyan and Martinez went on a rampage out of revenge. Witnesses said Martinez was bent on getting back at those he felt were “snitching” on him. Several witnesses testified that Pogosyan boasted he and Martinez had “blasted” five people.

Authorities believed Pogosyan was responsible for killing five of the six people who died in the September 7 shootings. The sixth victim was Michael Martinez, who helped Pogosyan carry out the crime. Martinez later was found shot to death in a field, but no one had been charged in his death.

The shootings left:

• Eddie Morales Jr., 18, and Zach Obert, 18, dead in a house in Aurora.
• Greg Medla, 18; Penny Bowman, 37; and Marissa Avalos, 16 dead in a second home nearby.

A district court jury convicted Pogosyan of five counts of felony murder on June 18. He was also convicted on five counts of second-degree murder, two counts of first-degree burglary, and one count of being an accessory to crime in a 1998 rampage that left five people in two different houses dead.

Investigation

Investigators believe Pogosyan and Martinez armed themselves with shotguns and put bandanas over their faces before the shootings.

Artur Martirosyan, 18, was suspected of driving Pogosyan and Martinez to one of the homes. He remained a fugitive.

During sentencing hearing, defense attorneys argued motions for a new trial but they were denied.

Trial

The New York Times reported that a teen-age boy who fatally shot five people in two homes in suburban Denver last September had been convicted of five counts of first-degree murder. It identified the teen-age boy as Alexander Pogosyan, 18, who was convicted on Friday and could be sentenced to life in prison.

In court, prosecutors claimed Pogosyan and Martinez went on a rampage out of revenge, while defense attorneys argued Pogosyan was a victim of sloppy police work. They said investigators failed to follow up on other potential suspects.

Maria Isabel Avalos, the mother of Marissa Avalos, 16, was quoted as saying:

“At least he will be punished for what he did,”
“He showed no emotion for the families and no remorse for what he did.”

Michael Martinez’s father, Miguel Martinez, testified that he drove his son to Denver Health Medical Center early Sept. 7 to be checked for a sexually transmitted disease. Miguel Martinez left the teen with $20 to take a cab home, but Pogosyan picked him up. When they returned to his house, Miguel Martinez said he found his son in the kitchen taking knives but disarmed him. Miguel Martinez testified that:

“He told me everyone was going to die,”
“I told him nobody was going to die. Then he left and slammed the door on me.”

Esther Martinez testified that she and her husband returned home that weekend to find their son had broken a rule prohibiting him from having friends over when no adults were present. Esther Martinez described finding Pogosyan’s clothing on her son’s bed, along with a duffel bag containing shotgun shells, and surgical gloves among the clothing.

Esther Martinez testified that when the teens returned moments later, she demanded that Pogosyan leave, but he refused. She testified that he told her:

“He say I just came here to protect Michael. They are going to come to kill Michael, blast out your windows and kill you and your husband.”

Esther Martinez testified that Pogosyan gave her a telephone number of the alleged enemy. When she called the number, a teenage girl answered. Esther Martinez said she told her:

“leave the boys alone and don't call my house anymore.”

Pogosyan’s girlfriend, Noelle Peterson, 16, testified that he told her he shot three of the victims. Nicolle Peterson, 16, was also described as Pogosyan’s girlfriend.

Sentencing

Pogosyan was sentenced Monday to five consecutive life terms in prison without parole for his role in the so-called Labor Day Massacre on September 27, 1999.

The sentencing was handed down by Arapahoe County District Judge James Macrum Jr. after hearing testimony from members of the five victims’ families and pleas from Pogosyan’s mother to spare her 18-year-old son.

Michael Knight, spokesman for the Arapahoe County District Attorney’s Office, said:

“It was very emotional. There were sobs,”
“They (the victims' families) felt that the court could never get their loved ones back and that Mr. Pogosyan had shown no remorse,”

Knight said Pogosyan’s mother believed her son did not commit the murders:

“She said she won't rest until justice is served,”

Knight also said Pogosyan showed little emotion during the two-hour hearing and did not address the court.

Under Colorado law, each of the felony murder convictions carried a mandatory sentence of life in prison without parole.

The judge also sentenced Pogosyan to six years in prison for being an accessory to a crime. Knight said it was an “insurance policy” in case the murder convictions were ever overturned on appeal.

Defense attorneys argued that Pogosyan was a juvenile, just 17, at the time of the murders, but Knight said Pogosyan was treated as an adult throughout the proceedings and the judge stayed that course.

Appeals

No appeal outcome was stated.

Outcome

Pogosyan was convicted by a district court jury and was sentenced to five consecutive life terms in prison without parole on September 27, 1999.

Michael Martinez was found shot to death at an office park near the Park Meadows mall several hours after the other shootings, and later descriptions also stated his body was found in a field with 13 gunshot wounds. No one had been charged in his death.

Artur Martirosyan remained a fugitive.

Aftermath

Authorities believed Pogosyan and Martinez responsible for a shooting rampage that left six people dead in Aurora over Labor Day, 1998. Pogosyan was accused of killing five of the six people who died.

Pogosyan’s girlfriend testified that he admitted taking part in the shooting rampage. During court testimony, she said Pogosyan told her he’d killed at least three of the victims. She also testified that:

“Alex said he was either going to kill himself or spend the rest of his life in jail... He was ... on the verge of tears.”

Miguel Martinez testified that after Pogosyan picked up Michael Martinez, Michael Martinez was disarmed after being found taking knives in the kitchen. Esther Martinez testified that Pogosyan refused to leave and made statements about an enemy and a plan to kill.

It was stated that Martinez later wanted to find his girlfriend and kill her, too, based on Martirosyan’s account. Martirosyan’s account included the statement:

“They all snitched on me, and I'm going to get them,”
Martirosyan said Pogosyan called him at about 9:30 p.m. and sounded dejected, saying: “They got Mike. I'm just sitting here at home waiting for Mike,''