Reuters AlertNet Lite - U.S. court jails Mexican for murder of DEA agent

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U.S. court jails Mexican for murder of DEA agent

14 Nov 2006 00:10:20 GMT
Source: Reuters

PHOENIX, Nov 13 (Reuters) - An Arizona court on Monday sentenced a Mexican who was once on the FBI's most wanted list to life in prison for his part in killing a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agent more than a decade ago.

Maricopa County Superior Court in Phoenix sentenced Agustin Vasquez Mendoza to life with the possibility of parole after 25 years for masterminding the murder of DEA special agent Richard Fass in Glendale, a suburb of Phoenix, in 1994.

Vasquez, 37, was also sentenced to several terms of between 7-1/2 and 20 years to run consecutively, on charges ranging from aggravated assault to kidnapping and attempted armed robbery.

He will not be eligible for parole for at least 71 years.

At his trial earlier this year, the court heard that Vasquez oversaw a plan to kidnap Fass, who was posing as a prospective buyer of methamphetamine, and steal $150,000 from him.

He armed the gang for the raid, although he did not take part. The fatal shots were fired by his half brother Juan Rubio Mendoza, who was convicted in 1996 and is already serving a life sentence.

Vasquez, who was married with four children, then fled to Mexico where he hid for six years. Mexican police arrested him in 2000, following a massive manhunt involving Mexican and U.S. authorities.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation had placed him on their most wanted list, and U.S. authorities offered a reward of up to $2.2 million for his arrest.

Vasquez was eventually nabbed in Puebla state, in central Mexico. During his time in hiding, he had started a second family and fathered two more children.

His extradition to the United States was delayed because of a Mexican Supreme Court ruling against extraditing suspects who face tough sentences in other countries.

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Last updated:Tue Nov 14 00:13:05 2006