Back in July of 2014, the murder of 71-year-old Ramon Cervantes Sr made headlines when his body was found in a shallow grave in an abandoned area off the Honey Camp Road in Orange Walk. His family members, including PUP Minister and Area Rep. Ramon "Monchie" Cervantes, have waited over 7 years for justice to run its' course. And tonight, the news is that the 3 accused men have decided to plead guilty to being involved in his killing.
Those accused men Noe Gamaliel Gonzalez Avila, Angel Antonio Cardenas, and Mateo Pott Jr., but there is a major development in which Avila has pleaded guilty to murder. The other 2 have pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter.
The case came up yesterday in the Orange Walk Supreme Court before Justice Herbert Lord in that jurisdiction. Avila, who was in the presence of his attorney attempted to plead guilty to manslaughter, but DPP Cheryl-Lynn Vidal rejected that plea. He consulted with his attorney, Norman Rodriguez, and we understand that when the case resumed, Avila pleaded guilty to the capital offense. His two co-accused, Cardenas and Pott, both pleaded to the lesser charge of manslaughter which was accepted by the DPP's Office.
We understand that this is the first time that an accused person has pleaded guilty to murder in Justice Lord's jurisdiction, and today, Avila's attorney spoke to court reporter about the surprising outcome. He said that the case was scheduled to begin when the defendants decided to plead guilty:
Norman Rodriguez - Attorney for the Accused
"What more can I say? He had his option to plead not guilty, or guilty, and after doing a consultation he opted to plead guilty to the crime of murder. The trial was supposed to start yesterday, and we went prepared. Some applications were made by attorneys for the other 2 co-accused. They opted to offer a plea of guilty to manslaughter. That was accepted by the crown. My client did the same and he was not accepted. He sat with me, and we went over certain aspects of the case. He asked certain questions, and he made his decision that this is what he would do. He would plead guilty to the crime that was committed against the deceased person, Ramon Cervantes Sr."
Reporter
"Can you explain to us what were the allegations being made against your particular client, and how does he fit in all that."
Norman Rodriguez
"He was charged for murder along with the other 2 co-accused, and that was the charge before the court that was read to him yesterday. It is the way the court operates. You bring the defendants before the court. The charge is read to them, and they plead guilty or not guilty. I will delve much into the aspects of the case because he has pleaded guilty, but there is still some time before that plea is established in the court as guilty. He will have some time to think about what he has done and decide if he wants to change his plea to not guilty. I don't think that this is the position, but just to ensure that I don't say something that may prejudice his case or operate on his mind, I will not delve more into the case."
Justice Lord has scheduled March 23, 2022, as the date of a mitigation hearing on behalf of the defendants.
Their victim, "Don Ramon", was a 71-year-old former Orange Walk Town mayor, PUP Senator, three-time political candidate, prominent businessman, and a father of 4.
