In the late hours of a September night in 2021, 16-year-old Abreham Yohhanes, a Black male, was fatally shot in an east Denver apartment building. His life was cut short in what the Denver District Attorney would later describe as a 'terrible, senseless tragedy.' The young man, with nearly his entire life ahead of him, became another victim of gun violence.
The investigation into Yohhanes' death led police to Ashlye Handy.
Surveillance footage from the apartment complex showed Handy and Yohhanes arriving together on the evening of September 15, 2021. A short time later, the same cameras captured Handy leaving the building alone. It wasn't until the early morning of September 16th that a friend discovered Yohhanes, who had sustained a fatal gunshot wound. An arrest affidavit would later describe Handy as the teenager's girlfriend.
A month after the shooting, the Denver Police Department issued a bulletin seeking information on Handy's whereabouts. The very next day, she turned herself in to the authorities. Initially facing a first-degree murder charge, a Denver District Court jury ultimately convicted Ashlye Handy of second-degree murder in January 2025. In April of the same year, she was sentenced to 25 years in the Colorado Department of Corrections for her role in the death of Abreham Yohhanes. The case was also noted in a report on domestic violence fatalities in Colorado, listing Yohhanes as a victim.
