Second man charged in brutal murder of El Paso County teens takes plea deal

Joseph Rodriguez, one of ten people charged in connection with the execution-style murders of Derek Greer and Natalie Partida, accepted a plea deal Tuesday.

Rodriguez was originally charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the Mar. 12, 2017 killings. On Tuesday, those charges were changed to second-degree kidnapping, with a possible sentence of 16-32 years.

Rodriguez will also have to testify against the other suspects as part of the deal.

On Monday, another man charged with murder, Gustavo Marquez, pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree murder. He will face 16-19 years in prison for each count. He also plans on testify against others in the case.

Sentencing for both men will take place on Aug. 6.

In court, the judge said the sentences for the two charges will run back to back, meaning Marquez will spend a minimum of 32 years in prison for the crimes.

Marquez and Alexandra Romero both appeared in court on Monday.

Romero was scheduled to be arraigned, but that was reset for 3 p.m. April 30.