W. Va. Man Sentenced To Life In Prison For Killing Man Delivering Child Support Payments
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — A West Virginia man was sentenced to life in prison without parole for the shooting death of a man delivering child support money to the mother of his children.
Juan Xavier Chic, 30, received the sentence Tuesday in Charleston, news outlets reported. He was convicted in December of first-degree murder in the 2018 killing of Andre Leonard, 27. Chic and a woman had met up with Leonard so that Leonard could give the woman money to buy their children clothes for school.
Chic continued to maintain his innocence Tuesday, the Charleston Gazette-Mail reported. Defense attorneys said he and the woman were at the wrong place at the wrong time. They also said authorities never investigated any other suspect, including Torrion Betts, who was in the car with Leonard before the shooting.
Police never recovered a murder weapon, the newspaper reported. The woman later told investigators that Chic shot and killed Leonard.
Chic was also sentenced Tuesday to 10 years for use and presentment of a firearm during the commission of a felony and three years for prohibited person in possession of a concealed firearm, news outlets reported.
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