A man convicted of fatally shooting a fellow Christmas party reveler outside a Times Square bar was sentenced Tuesday to 23 years to life in prison — as the victim’s family charged that he had “no remorse.”
Christopher Rivas, 35, was found guilty by a Manhattan jury on murder and gun charges last month for killing Perseus Salichs, 33, outside of Times Square night spot Tonic on Dec. 19, 2017.
The pair had both been attending a Christmas party where Salichs spoke to a woman — throwing Rivas into a jealous rage, law enforcement sources said at the time.
“I realize that no sentence is going to bring back Mr. Salichs,” Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Laura Ward said after handing down the punishment.
“No sentence will make your life whole again,” she added to the victim’s relatives.
Earlier in the hearing, Salichs’ sister, Nairobi Urena, had spewed curses at her brother’s killer and screamed: “No remorse! No remorse!”
The judge then cut off Urena as she was swearing, but acknowledged and understood that emotions were running high.
The victim’s close friend, Christopher Cannon Mapp, described Salichs as a brother and cried as he spoke in court.
“You have no idea the gravity of this loss, the void that you created, the permanent hole that you left in a family’s heart,” Cannon Mapp said.
“There is no amount of punishment that fits this crime,” he continued. “The time you serve won’t give us any more time with Perseus.”
Rivas apologized to the family — but claimed that he hadn’t mean to kill Salichs.
“I’m so sorry to have taken away someone who was so special to you,” Rivas said. “I know the pain is unimaginable. My intention was never to hurt anyone that evening.”
Rivas had faced a maximum sentence of 25 years-to-life behind bars. His criminal defense attorney didn’t immediately return a request for comment.