Esteban de Jesus, Former Lightweight Champ, Dies

Esteban de Jesus, former World Boxing Council lightweight champion who fought in the shadow of Roberto Duran during the 1970s, has died of complications of AIDS less than two months after being released from prison for humanitarian reasons. He was 37.

De Jesus died Thursday after being hospitalized since March.

De Jesus, who had publicly admitted he was a drug addict, contracted AIDS during the early 1980s while serving a life sentence in the Rio Piedras State Penitentiary for the fatal shooting of a teen-ager in 1981.

Sentence Commuted

He died less than two months after Puerto Rico Gov. Rafael Hernandez Colon commuted his sentence after it was disclosed that the former champion had acquired immune deficiency syndrome. De Jesus was released from prison on the condition he remain in a clinic, which specializes in treating AIDS patients and drug rehabilitation.

De Jesus fought Duran three times and was the only man to beat the Panamanian during the 1970s. He knocked down Duran in the first round and scored a unanimous decision in a 10-round non-title fight Nov. 17, 1972.

De Jesus knocked down Duran in the first round again March 16, 1974, but was stopped in the 11th round in a bid for the lightweight title in Panama.

Won Title in 1976

After Duran was stripped of championship recognition by the World Boxing Council, De Jesus won the WBC title in 1976. He and Duran met for the undisputed title, with Duran winning on a 12th-round knockout Jan. 21, 1978, at Las Vegas.

De Jesus, who was born in Carolina, Puerto Rico, Aug. 2, 1951, compiled a 57-5 record, with 32 knockouts in a career that began in 1969 and ended in 1980.

Shortly after retiring, De Jesus killed a youth during a traffic dispute and was sentenced to life in prison.