GEORGETOWN, Colo. (AP) — Colorado prosecutors say a 34-year-old man has been sentenced to life in prison after a jury convicted him of dousing his girlfriend with gasoline and lighting her on fire at a campsite.
John Vasquez, of Arvada, was found guilty in April of first-degree murder and other charges in the death of Christina Archuleta-Blasier.
Prosecutors say the couple was arguing at the campsite south of Idaho Springs in June 2016 when Vasquez attacked Archuleta-Blasier. She suffered third- and fourth-degree burns over 60 percent of her body and died 33 days later at a hospital.
According to prosecutors, Archuleta-Blasier's two young sons witnessed the attack. One boy received second-degree burns while trying to help his mother.
Vasquez, who claimed the fire was an accident, has a history of domestic violence.