A Hennepin County judge sentenced 27-year-old Jose Luis Lopez Xique to life in prison without the possibility of parole this week for the murder of 22-year-old Kayli Arseth, a Richfield woman who was found shot to death in her apartment last year after telling him she only wanted to be friends. The case, which prosecutors have called a “rejection killing,” ended with Lopez Xique’s conviction on first-degree premeditated murder, a charge that under Minnesota law triggers an automatic life sentence with no chance of release.
Lopez Xique, who lived in Shakopee, was convicted at trial of first-degree premeditated murder, second-degree intentional murder, and harassment with aggravated violations involving a dangerous weapon, according to CBS News Minnesota. Prosecutors said he had been pursuing a romantic relationship with Arseth, but she made clear she wanted only friendship. A first-degree murder conviction in Minnesota carries a mandatory sentence of life without parole, the station reported. The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office has also stated that first-degree murder carries a mandatory life sentence without parole.
Arseth was found dead inside her apartment on Penn Avenue South near Interstate 494 on June 17, 2025, after Richfield police conducted a welfare check when she failed to show up for work, according to FOX 9. She had last been heard from the evening before, per a criminal complaint cited by the station. The medical examiner determined she died from a gunshot wound to the head and ruled her death a homicide.
Phone Data and a Neighbor’s Account Placed Him at the Scene
Investigators built much of their case around location data pulled from Lopez Xique’s phone, which placed him inside Arseth’s apartment building from 3:38 p.m. until roughly 4:49 p.m. on June 16, 2025, according to Alpha News. A neighbor told police they heard yelling and arguing from the apartment shortly after 4:30 p.m. that same day, the outlet reported. Per FOX 9, a search warrant later showed investigators found the apartment locked with secured windows and no signs of forced entry, along with bloodstains inside and a possible blood smear outside the door…