'Boy Hitman,' 15, Killed 4 for Mexico Drug Cartel
A judge in Mexico City has sentenced boy hitman Edgar Jimenez Lugo, also known as El Ponchis, to a maximum three years behind bars to be served in a youth prison.
In closed proceedings, the 15-year-old was found guilty of killing four men and kidnapping at least three others while part of the Beltran Levya drug cartel stationed in the Cuernavaca area.
He's an American citizen.
Born in the U.S., the Houston Chronicle reports that Jimenez Lugo was taken to Mexico by his grandmother as a result of his parents' addiction to crack cocaine.
When his grandmother died, he hit the streets, and was eventually recruited, along with his older sisters, into the cartel at the age of 11.
Mexican authorities apprehended the siblings in December as they attempted to fly back to San Diego to reunite with their mother, who is awaiting sentencing on unrelated charges.
Even though he's been convicted of (and confessed to) murder and kidnapping, the boy hitman is likely within his rights to return to the United States once he is released from prison.
In Afroyim v. Rusk, the Supreme Court concluded that the 14th Amendment prohibits the government from stripping naturalized or natural born citizens of their citizenship without consent.
Because he has not taken any action to denounce his citizenship, the teen cannot be denied entry into the country.
Additionally, Edgar Jimenez Lugo faces no charges in the United States, so he's unlikely to be apprehended if he tries to cross the border.
Related Resources:
- Mexican judge finds 14-year-old U.S. citizen guilty of beheadings (CNN)
- Two Texas Teens Killed in Mexican Border Town (FindLaw Blotter)
- US Border Officials Corrupted by Mexican Cartels? (FindLaw Blotter)