- Hugo Zamora Jr., convicted of first-degree murder, is appealing his conviction.
- Zamora was sentenced to 15 years to life for the 2023 Ogden killing.
- Co-defendant Charli Ortega Delgadillo, charged as an adult, also received a life sentence.
OGDEN — One of two men convicted by a jury earlier this year in the 2023 killing of an Ogden man during a robbery attempt is appealing the case.
A jury found Hugo Zamora Jr., 28, guilty of first-degree murder on Jan. 17 in the March 14, 2023, killing of Robert Bien in the 2900 block of Childs Avenue in Ogden. Zamora and Charli Ortega Delgadillo had been attempting to rob Bien, who they happened upon while driving around, and after Bien resisted, he was shot and killed, according to charging papers.
Ortega, who pleaded guilty in the case last April as part of a plea agreement, had been armed with a handgun. A second person with Bien was robbed of $60 in the incident, but was otherwise unharmed.
Apart from the first-degree murder conviction, the jury also found Zamora guilty of two counts of aggravated robbery and one count of obstructing justice. Second District Judge Jason Nelson sentenced him in March to 15 years to life in prison on the murder charge, five years of prison on each of the aggravated robbery charges and one to 15 years on the obstructing justice charge.
Zamora subsequently appealed the conviction and sentence to the Utah Court of Appeals, and his initial brief in the matter is due in the appellate court next week.
As part of Ortega's plea deal, the initial aggravated murder charge he faced was reduced to first-degree murder. Moreover, four other charges, including two counts of aggravated robbery, were dismissed. Ortega was 16 when the 2023 incident occurred, but was charged as an adult and was sentenced by Nelson on May 27 to 15 years to life in prison.
The language in court papers points to Ortega as the gunman in the killing. He had a gun when confronting Bien and the other person Bien was with when the killing occurred, according to his statement as part of the plea deal. Zamora described a struggle between Ortega and Bien.
"Hugo advised that (Ortega) got out of his vehicle and ended up on the ground with another individual. Hugo stated that he heard shots go off and saw (Ortega) getting up off the ground," reads the police booking affidavit in Zamora's case.
