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Phoenix Man Sentenced to 35 Years for Role in Deadly Kidnappings
Lexington, Ky. – On Tuesday, April 12, 2022, a Phoenix man, Rosario Diaz Barraza, 32, was sentenced to 35 years in federal prison by U.S. District Court Judge Karen Caldwell, after previously being convicted of conspiracy to commit kidnapping and interstate transportation of stolen automobiles.
According to evidence presented at trial, the charges stemmed from the kidnappings of two individuals, identified in court records as J.O. and M.A.T.O. Both victims were killed during the commission of the kidnappings. Their bodies were discovered in the trunk of a Volkswagen Jetta, on September 11, 2017, at 430 Blue Sky Parkway, in Lexington. That location was an automotive repair business owned by J.O. Two vehicles belonging to J.O. were stolen during the offenses and transported to Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.
Evidence presented at trial revealed that Camacho Zepeda and Diaz Barraza were distributing kilogram quantities of cocaine and heroin in Lexington, and that J.O. had incurred a debt to them, based on his involvement in the drug trafficking. Testimony by a pathologist from the Kentucky Medical Examiner’s Office established that J.O.’s cause of death was attributed to “chop wounds” to the head and asphyxiation. The second victim, M.A.T.O., died from asphyxiation.
Diaz Barraza was convicted at trial, in April 2022. Two additional defendants, Ramon Camacho Zepeda, 54, of Lexington, and John Carlos Betancourt, 27, of Penuelas, Puerto Rico, were also convicted for their roles in the kidnappings, in April 2022, and are awaiting sentencing.
Two other defendants, Jose Felix Tlatenchi, 39, of Wilkes-Barre, and Jean Michael Serrano-Jimenez, 31, of Hanover Township, Penn., previously entered guilty pleas relating to their involvement. Serrano-Jimenez pled guilty as charged to conspiracy to commit kidnapping, while Tlatenchi pled guilty as an accessory after the fact to the kidnappings. Both are also currently awaiting sentencing.
Under federal law, Diaz Barraza must serve 85 percent of his prison sentence. Upon his release from prison, he will be under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for five years.
Key Facts
- State: Kentucky
- Category: Violent Crime|Drug Trafficking
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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