Peruvian court hands down 15-to-35-year sentences for murder-for-hire of Indigenous defender

Four defendants received prison terms ranging from 15 to 35 years after a San Martin court found them guilty of a murder-for-hire plot that killed Kichwa activist Quinto Inuma Alvarado in November 2023. The longest sentences went to Genix Saboya Saboya and Limber Ríos Ruiz, each receiving 35 years; timber operator Segundo Juan Villalobos Guevara, accused of ordering the hit, was sentenced to 28 years and four months, while Jerly Saboya Saboya was given 15 years as an accomplice.

Inuma was shot while traveling by boat back to his community of Santa Rosillo de Yanayacu after attending a national gathering of land and environmental defenders; a female companion was also injured. Advocates from the Forest Peoples Programme and the Legal Defense Institute called the verdict a decisive move against impunity and a potential model for future cases involving Indigenous defenders. The court also ordered compensation of 750,000 soles for Inuma’s heirs and 250,000 soles for the wounded woman, pending final confirmation of the judgment.