AURORA | A jury convicted a Federal Heights man murder and attempted murder charges, for a series of shootings in 2023, including one that killed a man at Pitcher’s Sports Bar in Aurora.

After a four-week trial, Nelson Francisco Miranda-Rivas, 29, was found guilty of murder, several counts of attempted murder, first- and second-degree assault, aggravated robbery and conspiracy to commit aggravated robbery.

A law enforcement investigation linked Miranda-Rivas to three shootings on February 13, 2023: a shooting of a man at Highline Park, a shooting into a home on Idalia Circle and a fatal shooting at Pitchers Sports Bar, according to a press release from the 18th Judicial District.

“From the moment this case was brought to my office, our prosecutors and law enforcement partners refused to stop until we uncovered the truth and secured justice for these victims,” District Attorney Amy Padden said in a press release. “This defendant committed horrific acts of violence, and my team worked relentlessly to make sure the evidence was heard in court and that he would be held accountable. Today, he has been convicted, and he will not walk free to hurt another victim or another family. That is the justice these victims and their loved ones deserve.”

The first shooting took place at Highline Park, when a man sleeping in his car was approached by armed men who shot him four times, including twice in the face, as he tried to leave. Investigators recovered bullets at the scene that they later matched to firearms used in the shootings on Idalia Circle and at Pitcher’s, the release said.

Then around 9:45 p.m., multiple shots were fired into a home on Idalia Circle where Joaquin Orellana-Orellana and his nephew, Joel, were cooking dinner. No one was injured at the time.

About an hour later, police responded to Pitcher’s and found Orellana-Orellana dead from multiple gunshot wounds inside his vehicle in the parking lot. Another family member was also shot multiple times but survived.

The release said DNA evidence on bullets recovered from Pitcher’s and on a baseball bat at the house on Idalia Circle linked Miranda-Rivas to the crimes, as well as cell phone location data, which placed Miranda-Rivas at all three locations during the times of the shootings. Police arrested Miranda-Rivas in 2024.

“This case demonstrates the importance of following the trail of evidence, even when crimes occur at different locations and involve different victims,” Chief Deputy District Attorney Jason Siers said in the release. “Firearms and toolmark analysis, cellphone-location data and DNA evidence ultimately helped investigators connect all three Aurora shootings.”

Three co-defendants are also facing charges connected to the shootings.

Miranda-Rivas will be sentenced on Sept. 14. A first-degree murder conviction carries a mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.

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