Mexican drug cartel leader sentenced to 50 years in prison for journalist's murder

A federal judge in the northern Mexican state of Chihuahua has sentenced an organised crime leader to 50 years in prison for the murder of Mexican journalist Miroslava Breach, the Attorney General's Office (FGR) said on Saturday (local time).

A federal judge in the northern Mexican state of Chihuahua has sentenced an orgsed crime leader to 50 years in prison for the murder of Mexican journalist Miroslava Breach, the Attorney General's Office (FGR) said on Saturday (local time).

Juan Carlos Moreno, nicknamed "El Larry," was convicted in March for the 2017 murder of Breach, a correspondent for the Mexican newspaper La Jornada, who had been reporting on Moreno and his alleged criminal activities.

This is "the highest penalty to date and represents a precedent in investigations of crimes committed against freedom of expression," the FGR said in a statement.

Moreno's sentencing was delayed several months due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The government of Chihuahua has identified Moreno as the head of Los Salazar, a drug trafficking group that operates along the border with the United States. (/Xinhua)

( With inputs from ANI )