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Colombian Nationals Sentenced for Murder of DEA Agent
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Three Colombian nationals were sentenced today for their roles in the kidnapping and murder of Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent James “Terry” Watson in Bogota, Colombia, on June 20, 2013.
Hector Leonardo Lopez, 34, Julio Estiven Gracia Ramirez, 32, and Andres Alvaro Oviedo Garcia, 22, previously pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting the murder of an internationally protected person and conspiracy to kidnap an internationally protected person.
U.S. District Judge Gerald Bruce Lee sentenced Lopez to 25 years in prison, Gracia Ramirez to 27 years in prison, and Oviedo Garcia to 20 years in prison. Each also was sentenced to five years of supervised release.
The defendants were part of a group that conducted “paseo milionarios” or “millionaire’s rides” in Bogota, Colombia, in which victims were lured into taxi cabs, kidnapped, and then robbed. On the evening of June 20, 2013, they targeted Special Agent Watson.
Gracia Ramirez drove the taxi that picked up Special Agent Watson, Lopez drove the second taxi that was used to carry the assailants, and Figueroa Sepulveda entered the taxi carrying Special Agent Watson and shocked him with a stun gun while another defendant stabbed him. Special Agent Watson was able to escape from the taxi, but he later collapsed and died from his injuries.
Edwin Gerardo Figueroa Sepulveda, 39, pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting the murder of an internationally protected person and conspiracy to kidnap an internationally protected person on Dec. 9, 2014. Sentencing hearings for Figueroa Sepulveda and Wilson Daniel Peralta-Bocachica, 31, who pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice, are scheduled for Feb. 18, 2015.
Key Facts
- State: Virginia
- Category: Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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