Three condemned to between 28 and 40 years for drug trafficking and murder of Sergeant Ramos Vélez in Carolina
Three defendants received sentences of 28 to 40 years for charges linked to the murder of Sergeant Eliezer Ramos Vélez. The sentence was handed down by a federal court in Puerto Rico.
Three sentenced in Sergeant Ramos Vélez case: sentences of up to 40 years
Three convicts linked to the murder of Police Sergeant Eliezer Ramos Vélez in Carolina were sentenced on Friday to prison terms of between 28 and 40 years, according to interim federal prosecutor Héctor Ramírez-Carbó, according to primerahora.com.
Judge María Antongiorgi-Jordán of the Federal Court for the District of Puerto Rico imposed the sentences on the three convicts. Olvin O'Neill Concepción Tapia, alias "Sinfo", and Daniel J. López Vega, alias "Dany", each received 480 months — equivalent to 40 years — of imprisonment. Andyel González Sáez, alias "Martino", will serve 336 months, that is, 28 years in prison. All three will also serve a subsequent period of 10 years of supervised release.
The federal prosecution had requested different sentences than those imposed: 30 years and four months for Concepción Tapia, and 28 years for González Sáez and López Vega.
The sentencing hearing for a fourth co-defendant, urban artist Luis N. Isaac Sánchez, known as "CDobleta", was rescheduled for Thursday, 29 October.
Guilt in drug trafficking and weapons possession
The three convicts admitted their responsibility in the conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances, in violation of federal laws. According to the charge sheet, the sentenced individuals conspired with others to distribute significant quantities of heroin, cocaine, crack, marijuana and other substances in several public housing developments in the metropolitan area, including Sabana Abajo, Luis Lloréns Torres, Los Mirtos, Lagos de Blasina, La Esmeralda, El Coral, Jardines de Monte Hatillo and adjoining areas.
They also admitted guilt for possession of a firearm in support of drug trafficking. As part of the agreements executed, the defendants accepted their participation in the murder of Sergeant Ramos Vélez, which resulted in the application of the provision of the Federal Sentencing Guidelines corresponding to that crime, regardless of whether the agreement was under the charge of drug trafficking conspiracy or under the substantive charge of homicide committed with a firearm.
Context: leader of "La Familia" sentenced days before
The convictions come three days after Víctor Pérez Fernández, leader of the drug trafficking organisation "La Familia" and also charged with the murder of the officer, received a sentence of 45 years in prison. Pérez Fernández, known by the nicknames "La Cone", "Vitu", "Vitikín" and "Enano", will serve the first part of his sentence in a prison in Atlanta, Georgia, where he is required to study and participate in substance abuse treatment programmes, according to an order by Judge Antongiorgi-Jordán.
The convict had executed a guilty plea agreement with federal prosecutors to avoid a jury trial and a possible death sentence. The negotiated recommendation contemplated between 29 and 34 years of imprisonment; the judge imposed 11 additional years above the maximum limit agreed upon.
Source: Google News PR — Crime