Sonny Almanza sentenced to life in prison without parole, convicted in deadly shooting of Arvada Police Officer Dillon Vakoff

Just one week after jurors found Sonny Almanza, 32, guilty of first-degree murder in the deadly shooting of an Arvada police officer last year, a judge sentenced him to life in prison without parole. Arvada Police Officer Dillon Vakoff was shot and killed in September 2022, while responding to a domestic situation at a home near 51st and Marshall. 

Almanza was found guilty on all counts on Dec. 7, including first-degree murder, criminal attempted murder in the second-degree, second-degree assault, large-capacity magazine prohibited and first-degree criminal trespass. 

Vakoff's girlfriend spoke during the sentencing hearing on Thursday. 

"You've destroyed my life. You've ruined the lives of his family and his friends. You've caused pain to the men and women who took an oath to protect communities from people like you. Yet we get up every morning and continue to do what needs to be done because if we don't, who will?" asked Arvada Police Officer Megan Esslinger. 

The judge said it was a tragedy in every sense of the word and that the court can never restore a loss like that before announcing the sentence. 

According to prosecutors, the situation at the residence last year escalated, and was then taken outside. 

During his testimony, Almanza said he did not know police officers were on the scene when the shooting happened. He said he shot in self-defense after he was shot and injured. He believed it was another person, and not an officer, who shot at him. 

The shooting unfolded during a domestic situation involving custody issues over Almanza's two children. 

Vakoff died at the hospital after efforts by another officer, EMTs and medical staff to save him. He had joined the Arvada Police Department in 2019.