Man sentenced to life in prison for Lenexa apartment stabbing
A man in Johnson County was sentenced to life in prison Thursday for fatally stabbing a woman in a Lenexa apartment in 2005.
Angel Herrera was found guilty by a jury in January of first-degree murder and aggravated burglary in the death of Maria Morfin-Rojas, 30, in 2005, according to court records. Each count he was sentenced carries a minimum of 50 years in prison and will be served concurrently.
On Sept. 15, 2005, Lenexa police officers responded to reports of suspicious activity at an apartment in the 11900 block of West 77th Terrace, Officer Danny Chavez previously told The Star.
There, they found Morfin-Rojas stabbed to death in an apartment. Herrera, who was 23 at the time, was identified as a suspect, and was formally charged on Sept. 17, 2005.
Officers discovered that Herrera had fled to El Salvador days prior to the discovery of Morfin-Rojas’ body.
On April 27, 2023, detectives in Lenexa were notified that Herrera had been arrested in El Salvador. He was extradited back to Johnson County.
One day after a jury convicted him, Herrera filed a motion for a new trial, according to Johnson County court documents. The motion alleges that the court made a mistake in admitting a statement made by Herrera to law enforcement officers during the investigation and allowing certain evidence to be permitted, according to court documents.
Herrera filed an appeal Thursday to the Kansas State Supreme Court, according to court documents.
Previous reporting by The Star’s Caroline Zimmerman was used in this piece.
This story was originally published March 29, 2026 at 2:26 PM.
