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Man Guilty Of Murdering Rock Musician, Faces Life Sentence

GOLDEN, Colo. (CBS4) - Jurors have found a man guilty of killing a rock musician in Golden and then setting a fire to cover up the crime.

Thomas Kevin Laperch
Thomas Kevin Laperch (credit: Golden Police Department)

After the guilty verdict was announced, Thomas Kevin Laperch faced a mandatory life in prison without the possibility of parole sentence. Laperch is scheduled to be sentenced on Friday.

Prosecutors say in 2014 he killed William Burchett who had subleased a room to the suspect.

Burchett's home was then set on fire. He was the lead singer of a local band called The Resonators.

William Burchett (credit: Facebook)
William Burchett (credit: Facebook)

A neighbor, who in 2014 asked not to be identified, said Laperch moved in after responding to an ad on Craigslist. He said they all welcomed him to the area at first, but after a few days their feelings toward him had changed.

Police later found and arrested Laperch on the 16th Street Mall.

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