On Tuesday, American John Poulos was sentenced to over 42 years in prison by a Colombian court. He was found guilty of aggravated femicide in the murder of young Colombian DJ Valentina Trespalacios, along with charges related to the concealment, alteration, or destruction of evidence. The killing took place in Bogotá in January 2023 and has since garnered significant public attention in Colombia. Before her tragic death, Valentina Trespalacios was rising in popularity at music festivals and had been romantically involved with John Poulos since 2021, according to her family and the lawyers handling her case.
Following the ruling, the Office of the Attorney General of Colombia stated that prosecutors successfully demonstrated that Poulos had assaulted and suffocated Trespalacios, subsequently attempting to conceal her body.
“The security camera records show that the aggressor wrapped the victim’s body, hid it in a suitcase and abandoned it in a garbage container in the town of Fontibón, in the west of Bogotá. It was found there hours later by the authorities,” the AG office said.
On Tuesday in court, the judge found that the evidence shown by the prosecutors was enough to prove John Poulos’ guilt. As a result, Poulos was given a sentence of 42 years and eight months in prison, which is about five years less than what the prosecutors had asked for.
Furthermore, the judge banned Poulos from contacting Trespalacios’ family for 20 years and mandated his expulsion from Colombia after serving his sentence. Poulos’ defense plans to appeal, claiming he’s innocent of femicide and should be charged with homicide instead, which carries a lighter sentence. In Colombia, femicide, the murder of a woman due to her gender, is regarded as a graver offense than homicide and is punished more severely under the law.
Poulos was detained in Panama in January 2023 while trying to journey to Turkey, resulting in his expulsion to Colombia. Upon reaching Colombia, he denied the accusations. It took almost a year and a half before he was sentenced after Trespalacios’ death.
