COTUÍ, Sánchez Ramírez — The Collegiate Court of the Judicial District of Sánchez Ramírez sentenced Ammy Hiraldo Peña to 30 years in prison this Monday, after being found guilty of the murder of Yennely Andreyna Duarte, an event that occurred on March 26, 2024 in alley number four of the agricultural and ecotourism district of Quitasueño, in Cotuí.
The substantive trial, held in the Cotuí Palace of Justice, began shortly after 9:00 in the morning and took place between arguments from the parties, procedural incidents and several previous postponements that had motivated constant protests by the victim’s relatives. A large police force remained stationed inside and outside the court premises during the reading of the verdict.
After several hours of deliberation, the court – chaired by Judge Ramón Emilio Peña and also made up of judges Mayrelis Lazala Jerez and Bolívar Reynoso – issued the sentence of 30 years in prison against the 22-year-old defendant. According to the accusation, the crime would have been motivated by passion problems, although the defense presented appeals and objections during the process.
The conviction put an end to a process that shocked the province: relatives and friends of Duarte accompanied the hearing with protests and signs of rejection from the first proceedings, and when the sentence was read they responded with expressions of relief and the affirmation that “justice was done.”
The young victim, who was about to turn 20, was remembered by the community as an outstanding student and her death caused widespread local repercussions. After the ruling, the convicted woman was sent to the Najayo Women Correction and Rehabilitation Center, in San Cristóbal, to serve the sentence imposed.
The judicial authorities reported that the process continues in corresponding instances regarding possible resources.
