Woman involved in Sosa murder gets 3-month sentence

EPHRATA — For her role in the Dec. 9, 2016 death of Arturo Sosa, for which two men are expected to be imprisoned for the rest of their lives, Othello resident Paula Rodriguez Cuevas was sentenced to three months in jail.

According to prosecutors, Cuevas helped connect Sosa’s embittered ex-wife to Gustavo Tapia Rodriguez, Fernando Marcos Gutierrez and Julio Caesar Albarran Varona, who proceeded to kidnap and murder Sosa as he was driving to work one morning. Though Eustolia Campuzano had testified that she only meant for the men to “scare” her ex-husband, Cuevas told the court that Campuzano had previously said she tried to hire men from Vancouver to kill Sosa before turning to the George men. In spite of this, Cuevas still helped Campuzano connect with the men who would eventually murder Sosa.

Albarran Varona, who shot Sosa’s roommate during the kidnapping, testified against the other two men during their recent trial in exchange for an 18-year sentence and immunity from all charges. Both men were convicted Wednesday on a litany of charges, including first- and second-degree murder.

Cuevas was originally charged with first-degree assault with a deadly weapon, which is punishable by a maximum sentence of life in prison. In exchange for her testimony and cooperation with the state, “upholding her end of the bargain,” according to court records, she was able to plead that charge down to third-degree assault, injury negligence.

Cuevas did serve jail time before her sentencing Tuesday. She was initially arrested early April in 2018.

Emry Dinman can be reached via email at edinman@columbiabasinherald.com.