CNN en Español —American John Poulos was sentenced on Tuesday to more than 42 years in prison by a Colombian court, after he was found guilty of aggravated femicide in the killing of a young Colombian DJ named Valentina Trespalacios, as well as crimes of concealment, alteration or destruction of evidence.
Additionally, the judge prohibited Poulos from approaching or attempting to communicate with Trespalacios’ family for 20 years, and ordered that he be expelled from Colombia once he completes his sentence.
In Colombia, femicide — the killing of a woman because of her gender — is considered a more serious crime than homicide.
From the beginning, we established that we were facing objectification, an instrumentalization of a woman through various factors, psychological violence, violence of various types, including physical violence,” lawyer Miguel Ángel del Río told Focus Noticias.
Del Río also pointed out that only until the conviction is made final in a second-instance appellate court will Trespalacios’ family be able to seek reparation for damages.
Persons:
John Poulos, of, Valentina Trespalacios, Trespalacios, Poulos, femicide, Fredy Spíndola, “, Miguel Ángel del, Del Río
Organizations:
CNN, Colombian DJ
Locations:
Colombian, Bogotá, Colombia, Fontibón, cahoots, Panama, Turkey