MURDER CASE: Testimony continues in trial of Edixon Velasquez’s accused killers

| Crime | West Seattle news

(WSB photo, September 2017)

Two years after 25-year-old Edixon Velasquez was shot dead in the street outside his Westwood home, the two people charged in his murder are on trial.

After multiple questions about how the trial was going, we were finally able to go to court today, the only way to get that answer.

King County Superior Court Judge Kristin Richardson, a former prosecutor, is presiding over the trial of 23-year-old Anna Kasparova and 21-year-old Abel Linares-Montejo. Kasparova is the victim’s former girlfriend; Linares-Montejo is a subsequent boyfriend of hers, and described in court documents as believed to be the father of the baby she delivered in May of last year, eight months after the murder.

Prosecutors allege that they went to Velasquez’s house on September 19th, 2017, with the intent of robbing him; after Kasparova lured the victim outside, they say, Linares shot him twice. She was arrested the next day; he was arrested two weeks later.

The trial started in late October with jury selection. The prosecution called three witnesses while we were there today. The first was a records custodian from Facebook/Instagram, verifying records the company turned over from social-media messaging allegedly related to the case. The other two were a close friend of Linares and the friend’s cousin, both now 21 years old; they were both residents of an Auburn mobile-home park at the time of the murder. They spoke about visiting Alki earlier on the day of the shooting – not with Linares – but then catching up with him much later, after the shooting, and being present when police arrested him two weeks later. Questioning also centered on whether the alleged robbery attempt was planned, all the way down to a slang term used in messaging that might have indicated a plan.

The trial is expected to last at least through next week, Judge Richardson noted this afternoon. Testimony continues tomorrow morning but it will be a half-day, she also said. The trial briefs filed by both sides show a very short list of possible defense witnesses, including potentially the defendants themselves.

John Smith November 19, 2019 (10:16 pm)

Excellent news article: informative to the max with no bias. I wish the rest of the “news media” were still proud to be journalists, instead of being part of a political agenda.

Nolan November 20, 2019 (2:27 am)

Your repetition of anti-journalistic propaganda, on the other hand, is almost certainly indicative of a political agenda (and also remarkably irresponsible).

buttercup November 20, 2019 (4:54 am)

Thankyou for the informative report. Nice to see an article without drama, just facts reported in court. Great job!

ktrapp November 20, 2019 (9:12 am)

I’ll be interested to see what kind of defense they try to offer. If I recall correctly, the ex-girlfriend called the victim while parked outside his house and asked him to come out to talk. Plus, there’s also video footage of the murder itself, where the shooter is visible, with the ex-girlfriend witnessing it happen and doing nothing except look at the body and then drive off. I’m not seeing what kind of defense can be offered up with that kind of physical evidence working against them.

Mollie November 21, 2019 (9:25 pm)

I’m Edixon’s American mom. I have attended every day of the trial. Both the prosecution and defense rested; there will be no defense offered. While the jury was out, the two defense attorneys argued for dismissal based on the State’s lack of direct evidence and weak circumstantial evidence linking the crime to a conspiracy. The judge was thoughtful in her response denying both motions from both attorneys. On Monday, December 2, there will be closing statements by both sides; after that, the jury will deliberate.
- WSB November 21, 2019 (10:00 pm)
  
  Thank you for the update. I was hoping to catch the closings, so now I can just plan to be there Dec. 2nd. Looking at the trial briefs, it didn’t appear they had much defense planned in the first place. – TR
- J M December 5, 2019 (1:29 pm)
  
  I am so sorry for your loss. Eddie was a wonderful neighbor

Sarah November 20, 2019 (11:09 am)

I hope the little baby that’s innocently mixed up in this is OK. It’s just so sad to see when a new life comes into a sad and turbulent situation like parents in jail. Consider fostering if you can offer a child a secure chance at a good life…

J M December 5, 2019 (1:28 pm)

Do you know if there is a verdict yet?

WSB December 5, 2019 (1:41 pm)

They just announced there’s a verdict and I’m hurtling downtown (co-publisher driving) in hopes of getting there in time (if I miss the reading, of course I’ll still get the info).

Mollie December 5, 2019 (5:35 pm)

Edixon’s killers were found guilty of 1st degree felony murder. The sentencing is 4 to 6 weeks out. Anna cried; no tears for my son she helped murder, but only for herself facing life in prison. Abel smiled, leaving the courtroom smug shouting that he was “going home.” I’m wondering how he thinks that’s going to work out for him in prison.