LOS ANGELES : 2 Convictions Reversed in Camarena Murder Case
A federal appeals court on Wednesday reversed two convictions of a former Mexican police officer serving a prison sentence for his role in the 1985 torture-murder of DEA Agent Enrique Camarena and his pilot, Alfredo Zavala.
In a lengthy opinion, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Raul Lopez-Alvarez was properly convicted on four counts of kidnaping and murdering Camarena. But it also found that Lopez should not have been convicted on counts of kidnaping and murdering Zavala and of acting as an accessory after the fact to those crimes. The original case was argued in a federal district court in Los Angeles.
According to the 9th Circuit judges, the only evidence that supported the charges that Lopez participated in the crimes against Zavala was that which linked him to Camarena’s abduction.
Although that voids two convictions with a combined 70-year prison sentence, it still leaves Lopez facing a long time in prison. The remaining convictions carry sentences of life in prison on one count and 180 years on the other three.
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