Lightweight boxer Felix Verdejo surrendered to federal agents in Puerto Rico on Sunday night ahead of being charged in the death a woman and her unborn child last week in San Juan.
Verdejo turned himself in after the FBI filed a criminal complaint in federal court. The San Juan native is accused of killing 27-year-old Keishla Rodriguez and the baby, who Rodriguez's family claims was Verdejo's. Verdejo is married with a daughter but reportedly had known Rodriguez since middle school. Rodriguez's parents claim he remained in contact with her.
The U.S. Attorney's Office in San Juan announced (per The Associated Press) that Verdejo, 27, would be charged with kidnapping and carjacking resulting in death and intentionally killing an unborn child. If convicted, he could face the federal death penalty.
VIDEO of Boxer Felix Verdejo right after he surrendered to the FBI in Puerto Rico pic.twitter.com/FNni5jFGFv
— David Begnaud (@DavidBegnaud) May 3, 2021
According to the complaint filed Sunday evening by FBI Special Agent Lorenzo Villanova Perez, Verdejo called Rodriguez on Thursday morning and asked to meet with her near her residence. Rodriguez had told Verdejo previously that a pregnancy test showed she was pregnant with his child. Verdejo allegedly wanted Rodriguez to terminate the pregnancy.
Rodriguez arrived for the meeting and then got into Verdejo's vehicle. Villanova Perez wrote that Verdejo punched Rodriguez in the face and then injected her with an unknown substance that the boxer obtained at "Llorens Torres," which the AP described as a public housing project.
Villanova Perez further alleged that Verdejo and another man bound Rodriguez's hands and feet and tied her to a block; that Verdejo then drove Rodriguez to a bridge, with the other man following in Rodriguez's vehicle; and that the men threw Rodriguez's body off the bridge and into the water below. Verdejo then shot at Rodriguez with a pistol as she was falling toward the water, according to Villanova Perez's complaint.
Rodriguez's family reported her as missing Thursday after she failed to show up for work. Her body was discovered Saturday in a lagoon near San Juan, per the AP. She was identified Sunday through dental records.
Villanova Perez wrote in his complaint that the FBI interviewed a "witness" who had "first-hand, personal knowledge of the events" surrounding Rodriguez's death.
Top Rank, Verdejo's promoter, tweeted a statement Saturday after Rodriguez's body was discovered. "We are deeply disturbed by the news reports, and we will continue to monitor developments in the case as it progresses," Top Rank said.
Verdejo compiled a 27-2 career record (17 KOs). His last fight was on Dec. 12, 2020; he fought for the vacant WBO intercontinental belt and lost to Masayoshi Nakatani by TKO. Verdejo represented Puerto Rico in the 2012 Summer Olympics.
