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One of three teenagers charged with setting a Denver house on fire and killing five people was sentenced to 40 years in prison on Friday.
Gavin Seymour, 19, pleaded guilty in January to one count of second-degree murder for his role in the Aug. 5, 2020, fire that killed five members of a Senegalese family in an apparent revenge plot for a stolen cellphone mistakenly traced to the home. Denver District Court Judge Karen Brody gave him the maximum sentence allowed, according to The Denver Post.
“This is a tragedy that is, I’m sure for everyone involved, incomprehensible,” Brody said. “There was a loss of the most innocent of lives.”
Seymour and two other teenagers – Kevin Bui and Dillon Siebert – were charged after setting fire to the house in the middle of the night, killing Djibril Diol, 29; Adja Diol, 23; Khadija Diol, 1 (previous reporting identified her as 2 years old); Hassan Diol, 25; and 6-month-old Hawa Baye. Three other people escaped by jumping from the second floor of the home.
Gavin Seymour, Kevin Bui and Dillon Siebert were charged after setting fire to the house in the middle of the night, killing five members of the same family. (AP)
Bui told investigators he had been robbed the month before the fire while he was attempting to purchase a gun and that he had traced his iPhone to the home using an app, according to court records. He admitted to setting the fire but found out the next day through news reports that the victims were not the people who robbed him, police said.
Attorneys for Seymour and Bui challenged the search warrant, but the Colorado Supreme Court upheld the search. Bui is due in court on March 21.
Seymour apologized in court Friday for his role in the house fire.
“If I could go back and prevent all this, I would,” he said. “There is not a moment that goes by that I don’t feel extreme guilt and remorse for my actions … I want to say how truly sorry I am to the family members and community for all the harm I’ve done.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
