Federal court jury selected in Southlake cartel slaying

All three men accused of orchestrating the killing of a Southlake cartel lawyer killed in 2013 have admitted stalking the victim, according to documents filed by prosecutors Monday before jury selection started in federal court.

Juan Jesus Guerrero Chapa, reportedly the personal lawyer for the one-time leader of the Gulf cartel, was killed May 22, 2013, as he and his wife returned to their Range Rover at Southlake Town Square.

Jesus Gerardo Ledezma-Cepeda and his son, Jesus Gerardo Ledezma-Campano, and Jose Luis Cepeda-Cortes have been charged with multiple counts of interstate stalking and conspiracy to commit murder for hire. The gunman and driver have not been identified or arrested, authorities have said.

Ledezma-Cepeda and Cepeda-Cortes were in the courtroom Monday as attorneys and U.S. District Judge Terry Means questioned 60 potential jurors for about four hours. A jury of seven women and five men was selected.

Opening statements are scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday. Means said the trial could last up to four weeks.

Ledezma-Campano has pleaded guilty to the charge of stalking resulting in death and will testify during the trial, according to prosecutors.

Prosecutors’ documents filed Monday say Cepeda-Cortes “admitted to stalking the victim.”

“When advised of the elements of stalking he replied, ‘I guess that’s what we did,’ ” prosecutors wrote. Cepeda-Cortes, prosecutors say, indicated he quit stalking Guerrero weeks before his death.

“The evidence at trial will show this is false and that indeed he was intimately involved in stalking up until an hour before the murder,” prosecutors wrote.

Prosecutors on Monday filed a motion to keep Cepeda-Cortes from presenting a note from Ledezma-Cepeda as evidence.

In the undated note, Ledezma-Cepeda wrote to Ledezma-Campano:

“Gerardo, Pepe [Cepeda-Cortes] told what he knew. Don’t worry, all the responsibility lies with me. I used both of you, not knowing what it was. You are not responsible. Please leave it all to me.”

Prosecutors say they will introduce “countless emails” showing Cepeda-Cortes’ role in stalking Guerrero, including demanding more money for the crime and paying “the bulk of the expenses” such as airfare and a rental of a home in Florida and an apartment in Grapevine.

This story was originally published April 25, 2016 at 11:02 AM with the headline "Federal court jury selected in Southlake cartel slaying."