Attempted murder conviction nets 20-30 years

THERMOPOLIS (WNE) — Monday in Hot Springs District Court, more than a year after he was initially arrested, Judge Bobbi Overfield sentenced Hugo A. Luna to 20-30 years with the Wyoming Department of Corrections on a felony charge of second-degree attempted murder.

According to court documents just after 8:30 a.m. on April 13, 2018, the Hot Springs County Sheriff’s Office was notified that a passerby had located an injured female subject near mile marker 15 on Highway 120.

Upon initial interview, she said she was assaulted by a Hispanic male she knew as Hugo Michael, but who was later identified as Hugo Armando Luna Aguero.

An agent with the Department of Criminal Investigation observed a laceration of about 10 centimeters to the middle of her forehead, and swelling and two lacerations to the right side of her forehead that appeared to be due to blunt force trauma and/or a sharp cutting instrument. She also had a laceration about 12 centimeters in length to the left side of her neck that appeared to be from a sharp cutting tool.

During her interview, the woman said she had been traveling with Luna for about a month.

In the early morning of Friday, April 13, she asked Luna to stop so she could go to the bathroom. After getting back in, she said, he wrapped an unknown object around her throat from behind and began strangling her.

The woman said she lost consciousness and woke up in a ditch at mile marker 15.

Judge Overfield noted Luna was not a good candidate for probation, as his crime carries a minimum 20-year sentence.