Where is Alejandro Wilson Mejia-Velez now? Details explored ahead of New York Homicide on Oxygen
Alejandro Wilson Mejia-Velez is serving a life term in a U.S. federal prison for the contract murder of journalist Manuel de Dios Unanue. Mejia-Velez was found guilty in 1994 of acting as the gunman in the high-profile killing, which was commissioned by top officials of Colombia's Cali cartel (Jusita Law).
The assassination, which occurred in a Queens restaurant in 1992, was in direct retaliation for de Dios Unanue's investigative journalism reporting on drug smuggling. Mejia-Velez, according to court documents and media reports, remains in prison with no possibility of parole.
His case is still cited in warnings regarding the risks that journalists cover organized crime, as reported by the LA Times, July 6, 2008.
The case of Alejandro Wilson Mejia-Velez and the murder of journalist Manuel de Dios Unanue is featured in New York Homicide season 3 episode 12, titled Dangerous Work. It is set to premiere on Oxygen on Saturday, April 19, 2025, at 9 pm EST.
The assassination of Manuel de Dios Unanue
On March 11, 1992, Cuban-born journalist and former editor-in-chief of El Diario-La Prensa, Manuel de Dios Unanue, was shot twice in the head while enjoying a drink at the bar of Queens-based restaurant Meson Asturias. The assailant, later identified as Alejandro Wilson Mejia-Velez, was just 17 years old, according to the Los Angeles Times reports on March 10, 1994.
According to investigators, Mejia-Velez entered the restaurant with his face covered. He approached de Dios Unanue from behind and shot two 9-millimeter bullets into his head before leaving the scene.
As per court documents, De Dios Unanue was particularly renowned for his investigative reporting, revealing the activities of Colombian drug cartels, the Cali cartel in particular.
Cartel leaders placed a $50,000 bounty on his head. The killing marked the first known case of a journalist murdered on U.S. territory by Colombian drug traffickers, pointing to the influence and reach of the cartels.
The investigation and prosecution
The murder investigation involved the NYPD, federal law enforcement, and international law enforcement agencies. The NYPD, federal agencies, and cooperating co-conspirators assisted in identifying Mejia-Velez as the shooter based on witness descriptions, forensic identification, and information from co-conspirators, as reported by the Los Angeles Times.
Other suspects in the case included John Mena, who was charged with contracting the murder. Jose James Benitez and Elkin Farley Salazar were also implicated for planning and helping to execute the attack.
As per the Los Angeles Times, Alejandro Wilson Mejia-Velez was arrested in Miami over a year after the murder and extradited to New York to face trial.
According to the court documents, during the trial, accomplice testimony and physical evidence connected him directly to the shooting. Prosecutors stated that Mejia-Velez was selected for the assignment because he had boasted of having committed homicides in Colombia previously.
On March 9, 1994, Alejandro Wilson Mejia-Velez was convicted by a jury and sentenced to life imprisonment without parole, as stated on Justia U.S. Law.
Where is Alejandro Wilson Mejia-Velez today?
Alejandro Wilson Mejia-Velez is still in prison as of 2025, serving his life sentence at a federal prison. There is no publicly available record of any alteration of his legal status or sentence.
The remaining co-conspirators in the case, John Mena and Elkin Farley Salazar, received shorter sentences for their cooperation and testifying against Mejia-Velez, as per reports by The New York Times, dated October 24, 1993.
The man responsible for giving the order to execute the hit, José Santacruz Londoño, leader of the Cali cartel, was never extradited to America. The Washington Post article dated March 6, 1996, reported that he was subsequently killed in a gun battle after escaping from the prison.
Alejandro Wilson Mejia-Velez is in prison for life for the 1992 contract killing of journalist Manuel de Dios Unanue. The murder was ordered by the Cali cartel in retaliation for de Dios Unanue's investigative reporting. Mejia-Velez was convicted in 1994 following a highly publicized investigation and is still in prison with no possibility of parole.
