Prosecutor will seek death penalty in Post Falls double murder case

The Kootenai County prosecutor intends to seek the death penalty for a man charged with murder in the deaths of his wife and her young daughter in Post Falls last summer. Prosecuting Attorney Barry McHugh has filed a notice of intent to seek the death penalty for Angel Albertico Morales-Larranaga, 26. Morales-Larranaga, an immigrant from Mexico who’s living in the country illegally, is being held in the Kootenai County Jail on $2 million bail. He is accused of first-degree murder in the strangulation deaths of Facunda Velenzuelaleon, 24, and Dayana M. Valencia, 6, inside a Post Falls apartment July 8. McHugh had no comment Wednesday on the decision. Kootenai County Public Defender John Adams said, “It’s dismaying that the prosecutor has gone this route. The tragic events of that night don’t tell the full story of Angel’s dedication and love to his family. It’s basically a young man that spent the vast majority of his life working for his family, working for his children.” Adams also said Morales-Larranaga “has entered into negotiations with the prosecutor’s office in an attempt to resolve this in a way that both families and his surviving children can find closure and peace, and we will certainly continue to do that.” In a December hearing, Adams told a judge that his client had offered to plead guilty to both counts of murder in exchange for a sentence that would amount to life in prison.