Felix Verdejo, a Puerto Rican former lightweight contender who was tipped for the top until his career began to unravel rapidly, was sentenced on Friday to two consecutive life terms in prison for the April 2021 murder of the mother of his unborn child.
Keishla Rodriguez was just 27 years old when Verdejo, who had reportedly been pressuring her to get an abortion, punched her and injected her with fentanyl and xylasine – a horse sedative – before he and an accomplice tied her to a cement block and threw her off a bridge and into a lagoon in broad daylight.
Verdejo, who compiled a record of 27-2 (17 KOs) as a professional boxer, was found guilty of kidnapping that leads to a death and of causing the death of an unborn child.
His accomplice, Luis Antonio Cadiz, called 911 a few days later, amd provided the location of Rodriguez’s body. He pled guilty in a plea deal with prosecutors.
“This sentence should serve as a lesson for others,” Puerto Rico Police Commissioner Antonio López said. “It doesn’t matter how much fame, money or power you think you have. If you break the law, you will have to respond.”
