Santo Domingo. - The lawyer Jose Antonio Evangelista gunned down Wednesday was the first legal defender for Mary Peláez in the trial on money laundering for Puerto Rican kingpin Jose D. Figueroa Agosto, in which she was sent spend 15 years in prison.

He had also represented the murder victim Alfredo Rodriguez (Niño Pata Corta), and Pascual Jesus Cabrera, both suspected of drug trafficking in La Romana. He was also the lawyer of the Spanish ex consul who had filed charges against to Francisco Alberto Carela Castro, now being held for extortion with video tapes secretly recorded in motel rooms.

Evangelista traveled frequently to Panama, among his last trips in 2010, when he went there seven times, spending as many as seven days at a time.

The gangland style murder and the number of shots fired have led authorities to believe it is linked to the slayings of Omar Antigua Polanco, colonel Jose A. González and Rubén Soto Hayet, all linked to Figueroa Agosto.

Investigative commission

Justice minister Radhamés Jiménez called the case a challenge for the authorities and announced the designation of an investigative commission to investigate, while the National Police revealed that it found a burned vehicle in the East region similar to the one used by the gunmen.

Evangelista’s body had four bullet wounds, although the authorities found 28 shells at the scene of the crime, the Plaza ATH on the busy thoroughfare, 27 de Febrero, in Piantini.