Jury finds man guilty in connection with 2018 murder of Chino Valley High School student

A Yavapai County jury found a man guilty of first-degree murder on Friday for the 2018 death of a Chino Valley High School student, according to a news release.

Donovan Larriba-Tucker, 31, was charged with the murder of an unidentified 16-year-old student.

On the night of June 29, 2018, Chino Valley police received a 911 report of a boy who was stabbed, according to a news release announcing the verdict.

Police found the boy injured from multiple stab wounds and attempted lifesaving measures before the victim was taken to a hospital, where he later died.

Chino Valley police then launched what the news release described as a "massive manhunt," locating Larriba-Tucker early the next morning after the murder.

A police investigation revealed that a group of juveniles gathered in a field to settle a dispute over a girl, in which the victim was merely a bystander and was not involved.

Larriba-Tucker, at some point during the gathering, stabbed the victim a total of seven times, unfazed by the young victim's screaming that he had nothing to do with the original dispute.

The news release stated that police had evidence that Larriba-Tucker premeditated the attack, and he went as far as attempting to change his appearance to evade arrest after the murder.

At the trial, multiple eyewitnesses told their accounts of the murder.

"The witnesses displayed great courage during trial. They were all children at the time of the murder, and had to relive the tragic and brutal killing of their friend," said Yavapai County prosecutor Kristen Sharifi.

Larriba-Tucker's sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 9. He is facing a life sentence without the possibility of parole.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Yavapai County jury finds man guilty in murder of high school student