A Bogota man on Tuesday pleaded guilty to killing a women, whose violent death spurred protests over violence against women in Colombia earlier this year.
Javier Velasco initially denied charges of torture, rape and murder of 35-year-old single mother Rosa Elvira Cely, but eventually decided to change his plea to guilty.
Colombian radio station Caracol Radio quoted the murderer’s lawyer as saying “There are several pieces of evidence that put Javier Velasco at the crime scene, the defense has no major evidence.”
As well as a witness report, DNA was also found at the crime scene, linking Valesco to the murder.
A judge will rule on Velasco’s sentence on December 5.
The murder of Cely, a street vendor in downtown Bogota, spurred spontaneous protests in Colombia’s capital and calls in Congress to improve the criminal prosecution of perpetrators of sex or gender-related crimes.
