The new sentence handed down in the United States against Dámaso López Serrano, “El Mini Lic,” has reignited calls for justice in the murder of journalist Javier Valdez.
Griselda Triana, widow of the Ríodoce founder, reacted with outrage after the federal court in Virginia sentenced the drug trafficker to five years in prison for attempting to traffic fentanyl, without mentioning her husband’s murder or the extradition request filed by the Mexican government during the hearing.
This is the second time “El Mini Lic” has been tried in the United States. The son of Dámaso López Núñez, “El Licenciado,” surrendered to US authorities in 2017 and pleaded guilty to drug trafficking, which allowed him to become a cooperating witness for the US government and receive a reduced sentence and subsequent supervised release. That status was key to blocking his extradition to Mexico for years for the murder of Javier Valdez, even though Mexican authorities identify him as the mastermind behind the crime. His new conviction comes after he relapsed into drug trafficking activities, and he still enjoys the legal benefit of being a cooperating witness.
On his social media, Triana expressed his outrage at the court’s decision, emphasizing that during the trial “there wasn’t a single mention of Javier, much less of the Mexican government’s extradition request.”
