Colorado man sent to prison for ending fistfight with fatal gunshots

A Castle Rock resident who culminated a fistfight over accusations of romantic impropriety by shooting two men, killing one of them, was sentenced Friday to 60 years in the Colorado Department of Corrections. 

Miguel Angel Mercado, 23, fatally wounded Daniel Vilchis Mercado on November 29, 2022. The two men are unrelated. 

Their argument escalated in the parking lot of the Pines at Castle Rock Apartments in Castle Rock. Vilchis Mercado accused Angel Mercado's roommate of being involved with Vilchis Mercado's girlfriend, according to prosecutors with the 18th Judicial District Attorney's Office. Another man was shot and injured by Angel Mercado but survived. 

An Arapahoe County jury convicted Angel Mercado in mid-May of 2nd Degree Murder and two counts of Attempted 2nd Degree Murder. Angel Mercado, according to prosecutors, claimed self defense.

"In Douglas County, you cannot use a gun in someone else's fist fight," Senior Deputy District Attorney Nate Marsh stated in a press release after the trial. "This verdict sends a strong message that we will hold offenders accountable and seek justice for victims- regardless of the circumstances."

"The jury quickly and decisively dismissed the specious claim of self-defense by the murderer. Bringing a gun to a fistfight screams 'gutless act of revenge'. Law enforcement in the 23rd Judicial District-like Castle Rock PD- will continue to prioritize the investigation and apprehension of violent crime. Our collective goal will be to hold murderers accountable at the highest and most appropriate level. Someday this murderer will be free again. His victim and those who love him will never be free of this horrific crime," said District Attorney George Brauchler in a statement.