Lomachenko's ex-rival gets two life sentences for killing pregnant girlfriend

A court in Puerto Rico has sentenced the famous boxer Felix Verdejo for the murder of his 27-year-old pregnant girlfriend, Keishla Rodriguez, whom he had known since high school, The Daily Mail reports. The 30-year-old lightweight received two life sentences without the right to early release.

Back in July of this year, a jury consisting of Puerto Rican residents found Verdejo guilty. On November 3, Felix received his sentence.

Before the sentencing, the judge stated that Verdejo "horribly ended the lives of two people."

"The level of brutality only compounded the tragedy that led to these sad events. These lives, as well as the lives of their families, have been changed forever. There is no way to make it right," the judge said.

During the court hearing, the boxer's friend Luis Antonio Cadiz, who is also a defendant in the case, testified. Verdejo offered him money to help him deal with his friend. Cadiz was also a defendant in this case, but he made a deal with the prosecution and received a lighter sentence.

In April 2021, Keishla Rodriguez called her mother to say she was going to meet Felix at her house to show her the results and tell him she was expecting a child with him. Her mother warned her that Verdejo was dangerous, but her daughter ignored it.

Instead of going up to her apartment, Rodriguez was forced into a car. There, Verdejo punched her in the face and then injected her with a street drug called "tranquilizer" consisting of xylazine and fentanyl (a mixture of a veterinary drug used to tranquilize or sedate horses). Verdejo and Cadiz then tied the victim's hands and feet with wire and tied them to a concrete block.

They later drove to a bridge and dumped the body into the San Jose Lagoon. Sometime later, Cadiz anonymously called 911 and reported the location of the victim's body. During the investigation, Cadiz told the FBI that Verdejo stood on the bridge and shot the drowning body with his gun.

The parents of the victim, Jose Antonio Rodriguez and Kayla Ortiz, believe that the court has fairly punished the perpetrator.

"I am glad that he will live the rest of his life thinking about what he did to my daughter, and that is his worst judgment. I don't wish him death, I wish him health and that he lasts as long as he can... if he wants to last 200 years, let him, but always remember what he did to my daughter," Jose Antonio Rodriguez added.

In 2012, Ukrainian Vasyl Lomachenko defeated Felix Verdejo in the quarterfinals of the boxing tournament at the Olympics and later won gold.

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