The District Attorney — 18th Judicial District
  • Our Office
    • About Us
      • Meet the District Attorney
      • Mission Statement
      • Law Enforcement Partners
      • Unified Metropolitan Forensic Crime Lab
      • Forms and Brochures
      • Organization Chart
    • Contact Us
    • Employment
    • General Courts
      • District Court
      • Juvenile Court
      • County Court
    • Specialized Units
      • Conviction Integrity Unit
      • Cold Case
      • Appeals
      • Vehicular Homicide Unit
      • Diversion Counseling Program
      • Special Victims Unit (SVU)
      • Domestic Violence Unit
      • Human Trafficking Unit
      • Elder and at Risk Unit
      • Economic Crime Unit
      • Problem Solving Courts
    • Support Units
      • Finance Unit
      • Communications
      • Human Resources
      • Technology
      • Investigations
      • Victim Witness Unit
      • Central Services
      • Victim Compensation
  • Newsletter
    • Newsletter Archive
  • Victim Services
    • Victim Witness Unit
      • Victim Impact Statement and Restitution Information
    • Victim Rights
    • Victim Compensation
    • Domestic Violence
      • Domestic Violence Fast Track
    • Sexual Assault
    • Sex Offender Locator
  • Community Outreach
    • Newsletter
    • Consumer Fraud Protection
      • Community Presentations
      • Wage Theft
      • Fraud Alerts
      • Bad Check Restitution Program — DISCONTINUED
    • Outreach
    • Events
      • Senior Law & Safety Summit: May 21, 2022
      • Second Chances Warrant Clearance
      • Community Conversations
      • Citizen’s Academy
    • Volunteer
  • Reports
    • Data Dashboards
    • Financial Reports
    • Media
    • News Releases
    • Records Request
    • Officer-Involved Shootings
    • Peace Officer Credibility Disclosure Notification
  • Prosecution
    • Criminal Justice Glossary
    • Courtroom Diagram
    • Records Request
    • Docket Search
Ex-Taekwondo instructor sentenced to five decades in prison...
Report of June 1, 2023 officer-involved shooting in...
Enrollment open for Fall 2023 Citizen’s Academy
MS-13 gang member sentenced to life in prison...
Defendant in Douglas County double-homicide case sentenced to...
Arrest warrant issued in 2007 double-homicide cold case...
Report of February 2, 2023 officer-involved shooting in...
Colorado Springs woman sentenced to two decades in...
Jury returns guilty verdict for Littleton man who...
More than 100 warrants cancelled during ‘Second Chances’...

The District Attorney — 18th Judicial District

  • Our Office
    • About Us
      • Meet the District Attorney
      • Mission Statement
      • Law Enforcement Partners
      • Unified Metropolitan Forensic Crime Lab
      • Forms and Brochures
      • Organization Chart
    • Contact Us
    • Employment
    • General Courts
      • District Court
      • Juvenile Court
      • County Court
    • Specialized Units
      • Conviction Integrity Unit
      • Cold Case
      • Appeals
      • Vehicular Homicide Unit
      • Diversion Counseling Program
      • Special Victims Unit (SVU)
      • Domestic Violence Unit
      • Human Trafficking Unit
      • Elder and at Risk Unit
      • Economic Crime Unit
      • Problem Solving Courts
    • Support Units
      • Finance Unit
      • Communications
      • Human Resources
      • Technology
      • Investigations
      • Victim Witness Unit
      • Central Services
      • Victim Compensation
  • Newsletter
    • Newsletter Archive
  • Victim Services
    • Victim Witness Unit
      • Victim Impact Statement and Restitution Information
    • Victim Rights
    • Victim Compensation
    • Domestic Violence
      • Domestic Violence Fast Track
    • Sexual Assault
    • Sex Offender Locator
  • Community Outreach
    • Newsletter
    • Consumer Fraud Protection
      • Community Presentations
      • Wage Theft
      • Fraud Alerts
      • Bad Check Restitution Program — DISCONTINUED
    • Outreach
    • Events
      • Senior Law & Safety Summit: May 21, 2022
      • Second Chances Warrant Clearance
      • Community Conversations
      • Citizen’s Academy
    • Volunteer
  • Reports
    • Data Dashboards
    • Financial Reports
    • Media
    • News Releases
    • Records Request
    • Officer-Involved Shootings
    • Peace Officer Credibility Disclosure Notification
  • Prosecution
    • Criminal Justice Glossary
    • Courtroom Diagram
    • Records Request
    • Docket Search
Tag

Raheem Benson

Raheem Benson

Sentence for random murder of chef in Englewood is life with parole

The family of an Englewood chef gunned down in the street by two teenagers in 2016 told a judge on Friday that Nick Lewis’ death was tragic, senseless and a heinous crime.

Raheem Benson

Raheem Benson


They traveled from Florida to urge Arapahoe District Court Judge Andrew Baum to impose the maximum sentence on the one who pulled the trigger, Raheem Benson.

Lewis’ former wife spoke on behalf of their son, who had just turned 8 when his father was murdered.

Lewis’ “death was unjust and senseless,” his ex-wife told the court. “These young men have permanently altered the course of (my son’s) life. Nothing can be done to right what has been done.”

Baum listened and then sentenced Benson, now 18, to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 40 years.

“I don’t think any of your deficiencies shields you or excuses the choice you made that night,” Baum said, referencing mitigating factors the defense had raised in a previous hearing. “At some point you knew it was wrong to go out there with a gun … No one else made that choice.”

Baum added: “Your life is now the Department of Corrections.”

“Benson murdered for the mere thrill of killing another person. At any age, this can only be described as evil,” said District Attorney George Brauchler. “Colorado’s system is now set up to ensure that this cold-blooded murderer will again walk our streets, likely as early as in his 40s. We can only hope that his heart is turned away from darkness in the couple of decades he is incarcerated and we are safe from him.”

Lewis, who was 33, was a chef at Blackbird Public House in Denver. He was walking home from a convenience store Oct. 1, 2016, when he was targeted at random.

Englewood Police officers responding to reports of shots fired found Lewis lying on his back in the sidewalk in the 3000 block of South Acoma Street. It appeared he had been shot in the chest. Lewis was pronounced dead at Swedish Medical Center; he had been shot three times and died from a wound to his heart.

Investigators found shell casings at the scene. Witnesses described a vehicle that had left the area, and various security cameras in the area had captured video.

The vehicle was traced to one stolen out of Denver on Sept. 28, 2016; Westminster police reported it was recovered during investigation of an Oct. 3, 2016, shooting. Teenagers Benson and Louis Lara-Macias were arrested in that case.

Englewood detectives were able to tie both of them to Lewis’ death and they were charged with murder.

Lewis’ youngest sibling was 11 years old when he was murdered.

She read a victim impact statement in court during Benson’s sentencing.

“There is no excuse for the defendant to use age as a cop-out for the horrific act,” the teenager told the judge. “He is a predator and Nick was his prey.”

Lara-Macias pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and was sentenced to 21 years in the Department of Corrections, which will be suspended upon successful completion of 7 years in the Department of Corrections’ youth offender system.

Benson was convicted March 22 of first-degree felony murder, second-degree murder and attempted aggravated robbery in Lewis’ death. Chief Deputy District Attorney Rebecca Gleason and Senior Deputy District Attorney Brittany Martin prosecuted the case.

Lewis’ mother also read a statement in court.

“This murder was a concerted choice made by two evil men on a crime spree,” she said. “Nick was shot 3 times execution style – and all for what?” …

Benson “needs to deal with the consequences of what he’s done and be held accountable.”

Sentence for random murder of chef in Englewood is life with parole was last modified: June 18th, 2018 by Eric Ross
0 Facebook Twitter Google + Pinterest

2nd defendant guilty of murder of Denver chef in Englewood

An Arapahoe County jury found an Englewood teenager guilty of killing a Denver chef.

Raheem Benson, now 18, was convicted Thursday of first-degree felony murder, second-degree murder and attempted aggravated robbery in the 2016 death of Nicholas Lewis, who was 33.

When Benson is sentenced on June 15, he faces life in prison in the Department of Corrections with the possibility of parole after 40 years.

“The public should know that ‘life in prison’ no longer means anything close to that for murderers like this one. Because our state legislature passed a law substantially decreasing the penalties for juvenile murderers, this remorseless killer of a random, innocent, much-beloved, productive member of our society may be let back out onto our streets with our families before he is 40 years old,” said District Attorney George H. Brauchler. “He shot the victim in the chest multiple times and left him to die on the side of the road. Prisons exist to protect us from dangers like this.”

Lewis was a chef at Blackbird Public House in Denver. He had been walking home from a convenience store Oct. 1, 2016, when he was targeted at random.

Englewood Police officers responding to reports of shots fired found Lewis lying on his back in the sidewalk in the 3000 block of South Acoma Street. It appeared he had been shot in the chest. Lewis was pronounced dead at Swedish Medical Center; he had been shot three times and died from a wound to his heart.

Investigators found shell casings at the scene. Witnesses described a vehicle that had left the area, and various security cameras in the area had captured video.

The vehicle was traced to one stolen out of Denver on Sept. 28, 2016; Westminster police reported it was recovered during investigation of an Oct. 3, 2016, shooting. Teenagers Benson and Louis Lara-Macias were arrested in that case.

Englewood detectives were able to tie both of them to Lewis’ death and they were charged with murder.

Lara-Macias pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and was sentenced to 21 years in the Department of Corrections, which will be suspended upon successful completion of 7 years in the Department of Corrections’ youth offender system.

“We appreciate the fine and swift investigative work of the Englewood Police Department in halting this tragic crime spree,” said Chief Deputy District Attorney Rebecca Gleason, who prosecuted the case. “Their work not only led to justice but also made the community safer.”

“This defendant took one life and forever altered others by committing a violent and senseless murder,” said Senior Deputy District Attorney Brittany Martin, who prosecuted the case with Gleason. “We hope this verdict will bring some peace to the Lewis family, who lost a son, brother, father and friend.”

2nd defendant guilty of murder of Denver chef in Englewood was last modified: April 13th, 2018 by Eric Ross
0 Facebook Twitter Google + Pinterest

Recent Posts

  • Ex-Taekwondo instructor sentenced to five decades in prison for recording multiple children in changing rooms
  • Report of June 1, 2023 officer-involved shooting in Aurora involving 14-year-old juvenile
  • Enrollment open for Fall 2023 Citizen’s Academy
  • MS-13 gang member sentenced to life in prison without parole
  • Defendant in Douglas County double-homicide case sentenced to 97 years in prison
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
Footer Logo
  • Our Office
  • Victim Services
  • Community Outreach
  • Media
  • Employment
  • Contact Us
  • Prosecution
  • Disclaimer Policy

© 2022 - DISTRICT ATTORNEY’S OFFICE 18 JUDICIAL DISTRICT