PHOENIX – A man has been sentenced to 14 years in prison for his murder conviction in a 2010 beheading of a man in Arizona who police say had stolen drugs from a Mexican drug cartel.
Crisantos Moroyoqui-Yocupicio had pleaded no contest to second-degree murder in the death of 38-year-old Martin Alejandro Cota-Monroy at an apartment in the Phoenix suburb of Chandler.
He faced a punishment ranging from 10 to 16 years in prison. Prosecutors were seeking the maximum penalty.
Police believe the killing was intended to send a message that anyone who betrays the traffickers will get the same treatment.
The case has been cited as an extreme example of Mexican cartel violence spilling over the border.
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