Kevin Bui, one of three responsible for deadly Denver fire, sentenced to 60 years in prison

The last of three people responsible for the deadly fire that ravaged Denver's Green Valley Ranch neighborhood in 2020 was sentenced Tuesday to 60 years in prison, the maximum possible sentence, for Kevin Bui.

Five Senegalese immigrants died in the Truckee Street fire. Two of them were young children.

Bui accepted a plea deal in May. He pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree murder and said in court Tuesday that he took full responsibility for his actions.

Djibril Diol, his wife Adja and their 2-year-old daughter were all killed in the fire at their house. Hassan Diol and his granddaughter Hawa Baye were also killed. Three other people were in the house when the fire broke out and managed to escape by jumping out of the windows.

Family members of the victims gave statements about their emotional impact during Tuesday’s sentencing hearing in Denver court. Many said they haven’t been the same since that day in August 2020, and some continue to fear for their safety.

“We have been waiting for this day for a very long time. We have been in mourning, we are still in mourning, and this is just a step towards the end of the case,” Ousman Ba ​​said.

Gavin Seymour was one of three other people responsible for the fire and was sentenced to 40 years in prison after pleading guilty. Dillion Siebert was also sentenced to 7 years in prison after pleading guilty. All three were teenagers at the time of the fire. Bui and Seymour were charged as adults and Siebert as a juvenile.

Ba wore a T-shirt with a photo of the victims during Tuesday's hearing and said he wanted sentences for arsonists to be harsher.

“This is not the conclusion we wanted, but it is a step forward for all of us, especially after these court hearings over the last few years,” Ba said. “Finally, we no longer have to deal with the suspects and we can truly grieve and talk about the extraordinary people we have lost.”

Authorities said the three arsonists were wearing masks and hoodies when they committed the crime. They entered the home, started the fire and then used gasoline to spread it. The fire destroyed the home.

According to police, after his arrest, Bui told investigators that he targeted his home because he believed it was where his stolen cellphone was located. It turned out that the people at that address had no connection to the theft of a phone.

In the statement read to the court on Tuesday, Bui said he was not asking for forgiveness from the surviving family members, but was praying that they would find some kind of peace and joy in their lives going forward.