FLORIDA – A federal inmate in Florida has been sentenced to life in prison for the murder of his cellmate.
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Romeo Lopez-Hernandez, 37, of Coleman, was sentenced by United States District Judge John Antoon II on Tuesday. A federal jury found Lopez-Hernandez guilty of first-degree, premeditated murder on January 19, 2023.
According to evidence presented during the three-day trial, on February 1, 2021, Lopez-Hernandez strangled his cellmate to death using a torn bed sheet he had made with an improvised knife. After the victim lost consciousness, Lopez-Hernandez reportedly watched for guards and continued to strangle the victim until he was sure that the victim had died.
Lopez-Hernandez later confessed to the murder and bragged about it to prison personnel. At trial, however, Lopez-Hernandez changed his story and claimed the victim had committed suicide.
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This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Prisons. Assistant United States Attorneys Tyrie K. Boyer and Belkis H. Crockett prosecuted it.
