"Joker" sentenced to 18 years for killing young man in Sopocachi; defence will appeal
Manuel Alejandro Zambrana Rioja received 18 years in prison for killing a 21-year-old youth in Sopocachi in April 2025. His partner was acquitted, a ruling that the victim's family will challenge.
"Joker" sentenced to 18 years for killing young man in Sopocachi
According to reduno.com.bo, the court sentenced Manuel Alejandro Zambrana Rioja to 18 years of imprisonment at San Pedro de La Paz penal facility for the homicide of Joseph Emmanuel M., 21 years old, which occurred on the night of 13 April 2025 in the vicinity of a nightclub in the Sopocachi area. At the time of the crime, Zambrana Rioja was wearing a costume of the fictional character "Joker".
The street brawl also left two young people injured. The court ordered the immediate transfer of the convicted man to San Pedro penal facility.
Within the same ruling, the court issued an acquittal in favour of Mayra F. V., partner of the perpetrator, as it had not been established with technical precision her participation in the facts nor the provision of the sharp-pointed weapon used in the attack.
Despite the determination being adopted unanimously, the legal defence of the victim's family expressed their disagreement with the criminal classification applied. Lawyer Giovanni González argued that, from the preliminary investigation stage, the complainant had argued persistently that the conduct should be framed under the criminal offence of murder rather than homicide.
The legal representation of the family members announced the filing of two restricted appeals: the first aimed at modifying the classification of the offence from homicide to murder, which would allow the sentence imposed on Zambrana Rioja to be increased; the second focused on reversing the acquittal handed down in favour of Mayra F. V., invoking the existence of elements of criminal liability against her.
Source: Google News BO — Crime