Solved case · 2005
Also known as killing of Adam Anhang · Áurea Vázquez-Rijos
The short answer
Entrepreneur Adam Anhang was stabbed and beaten to death outside a San Juan nightclub in September 2005 while finalizing his divorce from Áurea Vázquez-Rijos. After a wrongful conviction was overturned, an FBI probe identified a hitman and, in 2018, convicted Vázquez-Rijos and two co-conspirators of orchestrating the murder-for-hire.
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Suggest coverage for Murder of Adam AnhangAdam Joel Anhang Uster (born March 8, 1973, in Winnipeg, Manitoba) was a real estate entrepreneur educated at Yeshiva University and the Wharton School of Business. He invested in Puerto Rico property, including part ownership of the Martineau Bay Resort in Vieques. He married Áurea Vázquez-Rijos, a former Miss Puerto Rico Petite, in March 2005 after signing a prenuptial agreement; his net worth was estimated at more than $24 million compared with her roughly $62,300. According to Anhang's father, Abraham, the marriage deteriorated quickly, and Adam came to believe his wife's pregnancy claim had been a ruse. He moved out, hired a bodyguard, and began divorce proceedings, reportedly fearing Vázquez-Rijos due to alleged links to organized crime.
On an evening in September 2005, Anhang gave his bodyguard the night off to meet Vázquez-Rijos for a dinner intended to finalize their divorce. Leaving the Pink Skirt Nightclub/Dragonfly Club at the intersection of Calle San Justo and Calle Luna in Old San Juan, he was knifed and beaten to death; Vázquez-Rijos suffered only minor injuries. Witnesses later described her as remaining calm during the attack before being pushed to the ground to simulate victimization.
The initial investigation led to the arrest and conviction of Jonathan Roman Rivera, a 22-year-old dishwasher at the restaurant, who was sentenced to 105 years by a Puerto Rico court. A subsequent independent FBI investigation exonerated Roman and instead indicted Alex Pabón Colón as the actual killer. A June 4, 2008 federal indictment alleged Vázquez-Rijos had offered Pabón three million dollars to kill her husband and lured him to the murder location; Pabón pleaded guilty and cooperated with prosecutors. Roman was released and later sued police and prosecutors.
In 2006, Vázquez-Rijos fled to Italy, later living in Florence, where she had twin daughters with an Italian citizen; extradition was complicated by Italy's reluctance to extradite for capital-eligible charges, even though Puerto Rico does not permit the death penalty. In 2012, U.S. and Spanish authorities set up a sting using a tourism company created by her brother; she was arrested by Spanish National Police at the Madrid airport on June 30, 2013. She was extradited to Puerto Rico on September 24, 2015, and arraigned before a U.S. magistrate.
Following trial delays, proceedings began August 21, 2018. Witnesses testified Vázquez-Rijos watched the killing and reminded Pabón-Colón to injure her to simulate a robbery. On October 3, 2018, Vázquez-Rijos, her sister Marcia Vázquez-Rijos, and ex-boyfriend José Ferrer Sosa were found guilty. On March 15, 2019, all three were sentenced to life in prison.
Adam Joel Anhang Uster born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
Anhang and Áurea Vázquez-Rijos marry after signing a prenuptial agreement.
Adam Anhang is stabbed and beaten to death outside a nightclub in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Áurea Vázquez-Rijos flees jurisdiction to Italy.
Federal indictment names Alex Pabón Colón as the murderer and charges Vázquez-Rijos with murder-for-hire conspiracy.
Vázquez-Rijos allegedly approaches a Jewish organization in Florence with false paperwork to attempt emigration to Israel.
Vázquez-Rijos' brother creates a tourism company later used in a law-enforcement sting.
Spanish National Police arrest Vázquez-Rijos at the Madrid airport.
Vázquez-Rijos is extradited to San Juan, Puerto Rico under FBI custody.
Bail hearing held for Vázquez-Rijos.
Trial of Vázquez-Rijos begins.
Vázquez-Rijos, her sister Marcia, and José Ferrer Sosa are found guilty.
Vázquez-Rijos, Marcia Vázquez-Rijos, and José Ferrer Sosa are sentenced to life in prison.
Victims first. Every legal label is set from public records and court outcomes, not from the prose.
Entrepreneur and real estate developer killed outside a nightclub in Old San Juan in September 2005.[3]
Indicted as the actual killer of Adam Anhang; pleaded guilty and cooperated with authorities.[3]
Estranged wife of Adam Anhang; convicted in October 2018 as a co-conspirator in his murder-for-hire and sentenced to life in prison in March 2019.[3]
Ex-boyfriend of Áurea Vázquez-Rijos; convicted as a co-conspirator in October 2018 and sentenced to life in prison in March 2019.[3]
Sister of Áurea Vázquez-Rijos; convicted as a co-conspirator in October 2018 and sentenced to life in prison in March 2019.[3]
Initially convicted and sentenced to 105 years for Anhang's murder by a Puerto Rico court; later exonerated after an independent FBI investigation identified another perpetrator.[3]
From the record
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