Guilty plea in consulate killings

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EL PASO, Texas, June 21 (UPI) -- A suspect has pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice in the killing of a U.S. Consulate employee and two other people in Juarez in 2010.

Joel Abraham Caudillo, 28, described as an associate of the Barrio Azteca gang, entered the plea Wednesday in U.S. District Court in El Paso, Texas, the El Paso Times reported Thursday.

Caudillo, a Mexican citizen, pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges involving racketeering, drug and money laundering, and to obstruction of justice for helping set fire to a vehicle gang members used when they shot and killed Jorge Alberto Salcido Ceniceros as he left a party March 13,2010.

Salcido's wife worked for the consulate.

Both the prosecution and the defense acknowledged Caudillo knew he was destroying evidence but was not aware the vehicle had been used in the killing.

Lesley Enriquez Redelfs, a consulate employee, and her husband, Arthur Redelfs, an El Paso County detention officer, were killed in a separate incident after the party, the newspaper said.

Caudillo faces sentencing Aug. 30.