A Las Vegas judge sentenced two women on Thursday to prison for killing a man in a Caesars Palace hotel room in May 2023.
Erika Covington and Arionna Taylor both pleaded guilty in November to second-degree murder and robbery with a deadly weapon for killing 25-year-old Bryan Altamirano-Solano.
A housekeeper found Altamirano-Solano dead with a gunshot wound to his chest in a fifth-floor Caesars Palace hotel room on May 15, 2023. Surveillance footage had captured Covington and Taylor going into the room with him early in the morning, and then running from the room with a brown bag about a half hour later, according to an arrest report.
When police spoke with the women, both admitted to being at Caesars Palace that night. Taylor said she didn’t remember meeting the victim.
Covington told police that Taylor met Altamirano-Solano in the valet parking lot, and spoke with him through a translator app on her phone before both women followed him to his room. When asked what happened in the room, Covington requested a lawyer, according to court transcripts.
In the guilty plea agreement, Covington and Taylor both agreed to spend between 10 and 25 years in prison. Prosecutors and defense attorneys did not present any arguments on Thursday, and District Judge Tierra Jones sentenced the women to the agreed upon time in prison.
Taylor did not give a statement to the judge, but Covington said she wanted to “send my condolences” to Altamirano-Solano’s family.
“I deeply, genuinely apologize for the grief and the pain that has been brought upon your guy’s family,” she said.
Several of Altamirano-Solano’s family member’s addressed the judge during the hearing. His mother, Nelly Solano de Alteramo, who appeared in court through a video call and spoke through a translator, said she didn’t know how to express the pain she felt at losing her son.
“They took my son away from me and they left my heart broken,” she said. “They left my heart empty. All I ask for is justice and for them to pay for what they did.”
Altamirano-Solano’s father, Victor Altamirano, grew emotional as he addressed the judge in person on Thursday. He also asked for “justice” for his son.
“It wasn’t enough just taking his belongings,” Altamirano said, also speaking through an interpreter. “They had to kill him.”
Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240.
