In the late summer of 2018, the life of 28-year-old Nicole Boston was tragically cut short in Denver, Colorado. On the morning of August 9th, she, along with her husband Jerome Coronado, 39, and another man, Christopher Zamudio, 45, were found dead in a parking lot in the 700 block of South Broadway, near a light rail station. All three had been shot in the head as they slept, an act that police would later describe as an execution-style killing.
The investigation into the triple
homicide led authorities to Maurice Butler, a 38-year-old man also known by the street name 'Khaos.' Evidence quickly mounted against him. A GPS ankle monitor that Butler was required to wear as a condition of his parole placed him at the scene of the crime at the time of the shootings. Several witnesses came forward, telling police that Boston and Coronado had been living in fear of Butler and were actively hiding from him. They owed him a drug debt estimated to be between $100 and $200. In the weeks leading up to their deaths, Coronado had reportedly been seen with a black eye, an injury he attributed to a beating from Butler over the money owed. It was also revealed that Butler had allegedly offered to forgive the debts of other drug users in exchange for information on Boston and Coronado's whereabouts.
Maurice Butler was arrested in September 2018 and charged with three counts of first-degree murder. The following July, a jury found him guilty on all charges. He was subsequently sentenced to three consecutive life sentences in prison without the possibility of parole. While the motive for the killings of Boston and Coronado was determined to be the drug debt, a clear motive for the murder of Christopher Zamudio was never established.
Nicole Boston's life was marked by hardship long before her untimely death. The mother of three had her first child at the age of 16. The father of her child was murdered in 2008, a loss that deeply affected her. At 23, she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer and underwent a partial hysterectomy, which led to a dependency on pain medication and a subsequent battle with addiction. Although she had a home to go to, her struggles often led her to live on the streets. Her mother recalled the last time she had hoped to see her daughter, just days before her murder, when Nicole had expressed a desire to come home. She had arranged to meet her, but Nicole never arrived.
