Who is Ivan Cantu and why was he sentenced to death in Texas, United States?

(CNN Spanish) — Ivan Cantu has been on “death row” in Texas for more than 20 years. His execution is scheduled on February 28. But he insists on his innocence and demands a review of the case.

Cantu, a Latino man, was sentenced to death in 2001 after being convicted in the 2000 double murders of his cousin James Mosqueda and Mosqueda’s fiancee Amy Kitchen.

According to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Cantu was born in 1973 in Dallas, Texas. He was 27 years old and working as a laborer when he was accused of murder.

Now, aged 50 and having spent the last 22 years in prison, his fate could be decided in the coming days if the planned execution goes ahead. However, both he and various organizations expressed concern over the case and asked for a revision.

Amnesty International said in a statement that “recent independent investigations have raised doubts about the adequacy of her legal representation at trial and raised questions about the testimony of the state’s main witness and the physical evidence supporting her testimony.”

Ivan Cantu is seen before an interview on February 21, 2024. (CNN)

“International defenders prohibit the imposition of the death penalty on anyone whose conviction is not ‘based on clear and convincing evidence that leaves no room for alternative explanations of the facts’,” the statement said.

According to an interview conducted by CNN, Cantu and his attorney argued that the state’s key witnesses — Cantu’s then-girlfriend and her brother — had committed perjury at trial. Additionally, they say newly discovered evidence supports the story Cantu told at the time of the murder, suggesting that his cousin was killed by rival drug dealers who had threatened Cantu the night before.

With this data, Cantu’s defense requested a hearing and is awaiting a decision from the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles on a possible pardon, although the final decision rests with the governor and he is not obligated to define himself.

In the US, since 1976, when the US Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty, states have executed 1,583 people and pardoned 294.

What were the crimes and why was Cantu accused?

Mosqueda and Kitchen were murdered on November 4, 2000 at their home in Dallas. The bodies were found in the couple’s bedroom with multiple gunshot wounds. Cantu and his girlfriend Amy Boettcher were in Arkansas when the bodies were found.

According to the Death Penalty Information Center, a nongovernmental organization dedicated to providing information on the subject, in the trial against Cantu, Amy Bottcher, the prosecution relied heavily on the testimony of Mr. “Cantu, who testified that he committed the murders.” Took her to the crime scene and then took her on a trip to Arkansas.” But “new evidence uncovered by a private investigator and others now casts doubt on the validity of Mr. Cantu’s conviction.”

The private investigator in question is Matt Duff, who, CNN reports, uncovered much of the evidence supporting Cantu’s claim of innocence and documented his independent review in a podcast.

With reporting by Ed Lavandera, Dakin Andone and Ashley Kilo