LUBBOCK, Texas — On Thursday, the KAMC/KLBK and EverythingLubbock.com newsroom received a hand-written letter from Carlos Rodriquez who is currently in jail – indicted for the murder of Zoe Campos.
In the letter, Rodriquez again confessed to the murder and described the events of November 17, 2013 in some detail.
Campos was 18 years old when she went missing. Her body was found five years later – almost to the day in the backyard of a home in the 1900 block of 70th Street. Previous jail records indicated that Rodriquez at one time lived at the house where her body was found.
“I confessed to detective’s [sic] after 5 long years of guilt, shame and fear of the unknown out-come [sic],” Rodriquez wrote.
“I confessed simply because I couldn’t take this burden anymore. This burden was so heavy on me that before I confessed to detective’s [sic] I confessed my crime to a friend xxxxx here at L.C.D.C. [the Lubbock County Detention Center],” he also wrote.
Officials said at the time that an inmate acted as an informant, but the name has never been officially released to the public.
Rodriquez continued, “On 11-17-13 while visiting an old friend named April, Zoe happened to show up. It was obvious to the both of us that we had an attraction for each other so I messaged Zoe on Facebook and we agreed to meet at my house.”
Rodriquez said that they smoked 2 cigarillos containing K-2.
“I just want a fair judgement and not to be labeled as a murderer.”
From there Rodriquez wrote the following:
I started to lose track of time and spacing out. She kept saying things and I could hear her laughing but my mind was somewhere else. When I turned to face her, her face looked different. She looked very weird in an evil way and I started to panic but I couldn’t move. I wanted to tell her but didn’t want to sound weak or embarrassed so I started to sweat a lot and I could feel my heart pounding so hard in my chest that I couldn’t speak or swallow because of this huge knot in my throat. Zoe kept grinning and asking me if I was okay but I was certain I was dying. Thats [sic] when I started to get light headed and my vision started to black out. Then Zoe said “your [sic] f***ing tripping” and when she opened her mouth to laugh her face started to melt and that’s when I struck her. She got up and I heard a demonic scream I remember her running to the door and so I grabbed what appeard [sic] to be a demon from behind in a rear naked choke. I don’t know how long I was choking her but. When I let go I started to come back I started to realize what had happened and my whole world started to crumble.
Rodriquez admitted he committed a horrific act.
“But I’m [sic] not a murderer I simply commited [sic] a wrekless [sic] act 5 years ago that ended tragic,” he wrote.
“I’m not asking for a dismisal [sic]. I just want a fair judgement and not to be labeled as a murderer but as a 20 year old kid who made a mistake because of K-2 playing a major factor in my case.”
“… Do your kids, friends and people dear to you a favor. Educate them on this K-2 synthetic marijana [sic] please. It will save everyone suffering, pain and most importantly it can save lives.”
Rodriquez apologized. He remains in the Lubbock County Detention Center on a $500,000 bond while the murder case against him is pending.
His attorney, Charles Blevins, issued the following statement:
By covering this case the media is playing an important role in our democracy—checking on the health of our justice system and ensuring the community stays informed. Justice must be done and justice must be seen to be done. When a case such as this one garners this much attention it often sets a “measuring stick” for what justice should be—what is justice for Carlos and what is justice for Zoe Campos—this is the role the media has.
My role in representing Carlos is to ensure justice is done and the integrity of the case is not compromised. I will not vouch for the veracity of the letter. Carlos is young and accused of something heinous. To say he is in fear of what the future might hold is an understatement, and what he writes out of that fear should be met with skepticism. Carlos will no longer cause confusion by writing to the media or speaking about the case.
I want to thank the media for continuing to be an important part of democracy as they are needed now more than ever. However, to uphold the integrity of the courts, to ensure Carlos receives a fair trial and for respect to the family of Zoe Campos, I have self-imposed a “gag order” in discussing the case with the media.
Thank you,
Charles Blevins
Related Story: Man charged for murder in Zoe Campos case