MIAMI: A Puerto Rican ex-beauty queen was found guilty Wednesday of hiring a hitman to kill her wealthy Canadian husband.
Aurea Vazquez Rijos — who spent several years in Europe as a fugitive — was convicted of hiring Alex Pabon Colon to kill Adam Anhang in September 2005.
The victim’s father, an emotional Abraham Anhang, told reporters at the courthouse doors: “I’m very happy, this has been almost 14 years of agony. And I believe justice has been done.”
Sentencing was set for January 31, 2019.
Prosecutors said the former Miss Puerto Rico Petite paid $3 million for the hit.
She had signed a prenuptial agreement six months before ordering the murder of Anhang, a Canadian real estate developer with properties in Puerto Rico, the indictment added.
According to court documents, at the time of his death he had a net worth of $24 million.
Shortly after getting married, Anhang began mentioning the possibility of divorce, court records showed, but under the terms of their agreement, Vazquez Rijos would receive much more as a widow.
The ex-beauty queen allegedly summoned her husband to Old San Juan for dinner to make it easier for the hit man to do his job.
The hitman later confessed to killing Anhang when the couple left the restaurant.
He also hit Vazquez Rijos so that the attack would look like a robbery. She fled to Italy before the prosecution issued the first indictment in 2008.
She was finally arrested in Spain in 2013 and then extradited.
Puerto Rican ex-beauty queen guilty of ordering hit on husband
Puerto Rican ex-beauty queen guilty of ordering hit on husband
- Prosecutors said the former Miss Puerto Rico Petite paid $3 million for the hit
- Aurea Vazquez Rijos fled to Italy before the prosecution issued the first indictment in 2008
Sydney man jailed for mailing reptiles in popcorn bags
- The eight-year term handed down on Friday was a record for wildlife smuggling, federal environment officials said
SYDNEY: A Sydney man who tried to post native lizards, dragons and other reptiles out of Australia in bags of popcorn and biscuit tins has been sentenced to eight years in jail, authorities said Tuesday.
The eight-year term handed down on Friday was a record for wildlife smuggling, federal environment officials said.
A district court in Sydney gave the man, 61-year-old Neil Simpson, a non-parole period of five years and four months.
Investigators recovered 101 Australian reptiles from seized parcels destined for Hong Kong, South Korea, Sri Lanka and Romania, the officials said in a statement.
The animals — including shingleback lizards, western blue-tongue lizards, bearded dragons and southern pygmy spiny-tailed skinks — were posted in 15 packages between 2018 and 2023.
“Lizards, skinks and dragons were secured in calico bags. These bags were concealed in bags of popcorn, biscuit tins and a women’s handbag and placed inside cardboard boxes,” the statement said.
The smuggler had attempted to get others to post the animals on his behalf but was identified by government investigators and the New South Wales police, it added.
Three other people were convicted for taking part in the crime.
The New South Wales government’s environment department said that “the illegal wildlife trade is not a victimless crime,” harming conservation and stripping the state “and Australia of its unique biodiversity.”
