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Irene Luevano: Man sentenced for murder of Phoenix mother

By and
Updated  February 2, 2024 6:17pm MST
Crime and Public Safety
FOX 10 Phoenix

PHOENIX - A man who pleaded guilty to killing his girlfriend will spend more than three decades behind bars for the murder of his girlfriend.

Jorge Lara pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and kidnapping charges in the 2022 death of 37-year-old Irene Luevano, a mother of six. He took a plea deal and was sentenced on Feb. 2 to 25 years for the murder and eight years for the kidnapping.

Lara, 28, stabbed Luevano in the neck after a night out at a bar, according to court documents. He then dumped Luevano's body in a secluded area in La Paz County, where she was left to die. Her body was found days after she went missing after calling family members saying she had been stabbed by Lara.

Jorge Lara_Irene Luevano

Jorge Lara and Irene Luevano

Police say Lara's roommate, Diego Teran, witnessed the murder and later led detectives to her body.

Investigators say Lara admitted to killing Leuvano, lying to police and threatening Leuvano's family. However, the motive behind the murder remains a mystery.

Victim's family speaks of grief during sentencing

Irene Luevano: Man sentenced for woman's murder

Jorge Lara, a man who pleaded guilty to killing a Phoenix mother who was his girlfriend, will spend decades behind bars for what happened. FOX 10's Brian Webb reports.

During Lara's sentencing, the courtroom was packed with Luevano's family, who told the presiding judge what Lara took from then when he took Luevano's life.

"My heart was broken after I heard that my sister was no longer breathing," said Luevano's sister, Victoria Luevano. "Broken. [Broken into] two million pieces. She was the person [who] was always with me. The person [who] would give me strength."

The victim's family is disappointed that Lara did not get a life senence.

"We miss our soul so much. You know we were expecting to get at least like a little more years, you know, but the judge decided 33 years, so we just have to go with that," said Sandra Mercado, who is also Luevano's sister.