The verdict was reached after the jury heard harrowing details of the April 2021 killing.
In a 25-week trial that shook the U.S. territory, former Puerto Rican boxer Félix Verdejo was found guilty on Friday for his involvement in the death of his 27-year-old pregnant lover, Keishla Rodríguez
The jury convicted Félix Verdejo on two charges, kidnapping resulting in death and causing the death of an unborn child. They were unable to reach unanimous verdicts on the charges of intercepting and stealing a vehicle with fatal consequences, as well as carrying a weapon to commit a violent crime.
Federal prosecutors erected their case on the testaments of over 30 individualities, including crucial substantiation Luis Antonio Cádiz, a friend of Félix Verdejo who was also intertwined in the case. Cádiz had pleaded guilty previously as part of a plea deal with prosecutors but is yet to be sentenced.
Félix Verdejo pressured Rodríguez to undergo an abortion before her tragic demise
On the day of the killing, Félix Verdejo allegedly assaulted Rodríguez and administered a substance believed to be heroin before tying her limbs to a cement block and tossing her off a busy bridge in broad daylight. Shockingly, a pathologist revealed that Rodríguez was still alive when she was thrown into the lagoon below the bridge.
Days latterly, Cádiz made an anonymous 911 call to expose the position of Rodríguez’s body. The autopsy confirmed the presence of fentanyl and xylazine, an animal sedative, in her system.
The death of Keishla Rodríguez has sparked outrage among Puerto Ricans, who continue to demand better protection for domestic violence victims from the authorities.
Félix Verdejo, who represented Puerto Rico in the 2012 Olympics and pursued a professional boxing career in the lightweight division with a record of 27-2, including 17 knockouts, awaits his sentencing.