Gay couple in Guatemala: seven former police officers sentenced

A court in Guatemala has sentenced seven former police officers to prison terms of 8 to 60 years for the extrajudicial execution of Eldin Choc and Milton Santamaría.
The two men were detained without legal grounds on April 18, 2024 in San Andrés Itzapa (Chimaltenango) and died in police custody.
The plaintiff organizations speak of “hate crime”, a figure that does not exist as a specific crime in Guatemala.

The murder of a gay couple in Guatemala at the hands of the police has already been sentenced. The High Risk Court B has convicted seven former agents of the National Civil Police for the extrajudicial execution of Eldin Choc and Milton Santamaría, detained in San Andrés Itzapa in April 2024. This was reported by Infobae and several agencies on October 22 and 23, 2026.

What happened to Eldin Choc and Milton Santamaría?

The two men were detained on April 18, 2024, in a store in San Andrés Itzapa, without legal grounds according to the investigation, and neither came out alive. Milton Santamaría, a Canadian citizen of Salvadoran origin aged 45, died hours later from an abdominal aortic rupture after being beaten.

Eldin Leonel Choc Xi, aged 28 and originally from San Pedro Carchá (Alta Verapaz), was found strangled on April 24, 2024, six days after the detention. His brother, Henry Choc, summarizes it this way: “Don Milton was beaten for being gay and my brother Eldin was killed for being the only witness.”

According to the investigation, the agents tried to pass Santamaría’s death off as a traffic accident.

What are the sentences?

The sentences range from 8 to 60 years in prison, depending on each agent’s role. Here they are:

Edy Leonel Vásquez Rabanales, former sub-inspector and head of the substation, and Freddy Santiago Velásquez Pérez: 60 years non-negotiable each (30 for each victim), for extrajudicial execution.
Mauricio Abraham Contreras Salán: 30 years for the death of Santamaría.
Yorleni Lisbeth Macario Ramos and Yulisa Nabely Ayala Yol: 11 years each, for failure to perform duties and discrimination.
Ángel Mario Roquel Sajbochol: 10 years, for obstruction of justice and failure to perform duties.
Jeremías Jacobo Rojas: 8 years, for abuse of authority and illegal detention.

Additionally, according to the agencies, two firefighters were sentenced in 2025 and 2026 to commutable sentences of one and three years for covering up the events.

A key audio and a flight to the United States

One of the decisive pieces of evidence was a recording of Eldin Choc’s pleas during the assaults. In it, he can be heard shouting: “Help, help please! Milton!” The Prosecutor’s Office also had testimonies from agents who pointed to Vásquez Rabanales as the one responsible for directing the blows.

The former sub-inspector fled to the United States, where he was arrested in June 2024; in August of that year he was extradited to Guatemala. The court set October 23 for the hearing on dignified reparation for the families.

Why is there talk of a hate crime?

Because, according to the organization Cristosal, which acted as a plaintiff, the homophobic insults from the agents demonstrate a discriminatory component. However, Guatemalan legislation does not classify hate crimes as a specific crime; discrimination appears in the sentences of two of the agents.

According to the Lambda Association, in 2025 there were about 30 violent deaths of LGBTIQ+ people in Guatemala. The sentence comes in that context of violence.
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