U.S. man sentenced to 42 years in prison for femicide in Colombia

Agence France-Presse
June 5, 2024 7:08AM ET

An American man was sentenced to 42 years in prison in Bogota on Tuesday for the murder of a famous Colombian DJ, in a case that drew international outrage from women's rights activists.

John Nelson Poulos was arrested in January 2023 in Panama while on the run from Colombian authorities for the murder of 23-year-old Valentina Trespalacios, whom he had dated for just under a year.

Prosecutors said he had beaten and suffocated her "in the midst of a jealous attack."

Security camera footage showed Poulos leaving his apartment pushing a cart with a large suitcase, which the body of Trespalacios had been stuffed inside.

https://www.rawstory.com/u-s-man-sentenced-to-42-years-in-prison-for-femicide-in-colombia/

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Older article:

US man allegedly kills girlfriend in Colombia, dumps body in dumpster
Body was found in a suitcase in a dumpster and reported to authorities

Loop News January 29, 2023 02:35 PM ET



Pictured here is John Nelson Poulos, who is alleged to have murdered his girlfriend, Valentina Trespalacios, in Bogota, Colombia, also shown here (Photo credit: Twitter)

According to Fiscalía Colombia, US citizen John Nelson Poulos was “captured for his alleged participation in the murder of young Valentina Trespalacios, which occurred last weekend in Bogota.”

Since news of the murder (described by authorities as “femicide” and not “homicide” because it is believed that the murder was committed because Trespalacios is a woman), video footage of Trespalacios, who was a well-known DJ, and Poulos has surfaced.

One of the videos shows Trespalacios and Poulos interacting outside an apartment that the couple reportedly rented.

After the interaction, Trespalacios appeared to return inside the apartment.

Poulos could then be seen pacing near the apartment door and, at one stage, rubbing his forehead with his hand.

The next day, Poulos was seen on camera loading suitcases in the elevator, which he then took to a car in what appeared to be an underground parking area.

More:
https://cayman.loopnews.com/content/us-man-allegedly-kills-girlfriend-colombia-dumps-body-dumpster

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Panama arrests US citizen suspected in Colombia of murdering fiancé
Wisconsin native detained after buying ticket to Turkey
by Adriaan Alsema January 25, 2023


Panama’s National Police on Tuesday detained a US citizen who is suspected of murdering his fiancé in Colombia’s capital Bogota.

Wisconsin native John Poulos was detained on Panama’s international airport where he wanted to board a flight to Turkey, according to local police.

Colombian authorities had alerted Interpol about the American’s alleged involvement in the assassination of Valentina Trespalacios, a DJ from the capital Bogota.

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The suspect
While in Colombia, the 35-year-old Poulos claimed to be a financial consultant for a major American corporation, according to Trespalacios’ brother.

Colombian media initially reported that the alleged killer was from Texas, which turned out to be false after Panamanian authorities released an image of his passport.

According to the victim’s mother, Trespalacios met Poulos at a party approximately a year ago and told them he would migrate to Colombia in the coming months to marry her daughter and invest in the country.

The brother told media, however, that the murder suspect had hired a private detective to keep an eye on Trespalacios while she was working and was allegedly monitoring her phone.

More:
https://colombiareports.com/panama-arrests-us-citizen-suspected-in-colombia-of-murdering-fiance/