A Nicaraguan court sentenced Adrián Salmerón to 183 years in prison Wednesday for the killing of a U.S. expat, his Costa Rican wife and three of their children in Guanacaste in February.
Condenan a 183 años de prisión a Michael Adrián Salmerón, por asesinato, violación, femicidio y abandono.@laprensa pic.twitter.com/6awQIsLnYF
— Martha Vásquez (@MarthaVasquezLP) July 6, 2016
Salmerón was purportedly the boyfriend of Jessica Durán, 38, of Costa Rica. Durán was killed along with her husband, Dirk Beauchamp, 56, who was a U.S. citizen, and three of their children, ages 12, 8 and 6, on Valentine’s Day in their home in Matapalo, Guanacaste. Two girls, ages 4 and 7 months, survived the gruesome attack.
Following the crime, Salmerón fled to his native Nicaragua. Local police arrested him at a family member’s home on Feb. 19. He faced trial in Nicaragua based on evidence collected in Costa Rica and sent to prosecutors there.
Though Salmerón was sentenced to 183 years for the murders and for raping the 12-year-old, Nicaragua’s maximum prison sentence is 30 years.
The prosecution was a rare example of successful cooperation between Costa Rica and Nicaragua, which have been embroiled in a series of diplomatic disputes ranging from Cuban migrants to territorial claims.