A former Olympic boxer has been found guilty of kidnapping and murdering his pregnant girlfriend nearly two years after her body was discovered in a lagoon.
Felix Verdejo Sanchez, 30, received the verdict on Friday, July 28, from a jury composed of three men and nine women at the U.S. District Court of Puerto Rico, after a month-long trial. Jurors have convicted him, with the help of a co-defendent Luis Antonio Cadiz-Martinez, of killing 27-year-old Keishla Rodriguez Ortiz by punching her, injecting her with drugs, tying her to a cement block, and throwing her into the lagoon.
Verdejo, who represented Puerto Rico in the 2012 Olympic Games, faced charges including kidnapping resulting in death, possession of a dangerous weapon, carjacking, and the intentional killing of an unborn child.
The jury found him guilty of kidnapping resulting in death and causing the death of an unborn child. However, they could not reach a verdict on the other two charges. His sentencing is scheduled for November 3.
Keishla’s father, José Antonio Rodriguez, expressed his wish to reporters after the verdict, hoping that Verdejo would live with the burden of his actions for the rest of his life behind bars.
The lawyer representing Verdejo declined to comment on the verdict.
Rodriguez Ortiz’s death sparked protests across the island, emphasizing the urgent need to address gender violence and its repercussions in Puerto Rico. In response to the public outcry, Governor Pedro Pierluisi declared a state of emergency due to gender violence in the region, stressing the need to combat entrenched machismo, discrimination, and lack of action. He emphasized that gender violence has no place in the Puerto Rico they aspire to build.