'Heinous Crime': Judge Sentences Murderer To 40 Years In Prison

STRASBURG, Colo. (CBS4) - A man who stabbed his friend to death was sentenced to 40 years in prison on Wednesday.

Jeremiah Pepper pleaded guilty to second-degree murder on July 6 in the death of Andrew Martinez.

Deputies with the Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office responded to a stabbing in Strasburg on Aug. 10, 2016.

Jeremiah Pepper (credit: Arapahoe County DA)

When deputies arrived, Pepper, 21, had stabbed Martinez, 23, near Pepper's car. The two friends had been co-workers at a local fast-foot restaurant. Martinez slept overnight in Pepper's car and had an argument when Pepper went out to his car in the morning.

"One man lost his life. He was killed by the defendant," said Senior Deputy District Attorney Cori Alcock. "It was a simple argument and should not have resulted in the death of a young man with his life ahead of him."

"What's clear to me is that this was a young man who could not control his anger," Judge Douglass said. "This is the most serious offense there can be – a life was taken. … You committed a heinous crime."

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