The LGBTQ+ Federation of Puerto Rico criticized federal District Judge Pedro A. Delgado Hernández for not imposing maximum sentences on the men responsible for murdering two transgender women in Humacao on April 21, 2020. Sean Díaz De León and Juan Carlos Pagán Bonilla pleaded guilty between October and December 2025 to killing Serena Angelique Velázquez Ramos, 32, and Layla Peláez Sánchez, 21.
According to a federal prosecutors' press release, Díaz De León was sentenced to 35 years in prison plus five years of supervised release, while Pagán Bonilla received 25 years plus five years of supervised release. Federation president Pedro Julio Serrano said that without the plea deal, the killers would have faced life sentences, and lamented that the hate-crime aggravating factor was not maintained. Federation director Ivana Fred Millán said prosecutors should have sent a strong message that hate crimes against trans people are non-negotiable, noting this was the first case in Puerto Rico's jurisdiction to include hate-crime allegations.
Federation secretary Jennifer Orellana said the murders were cruel and motivated by prejudice against gender identity, calling for sentencing that recognizes trans people's full humanity. The Federation describes itself as comprising hundreds of individuals and over a hundred allied community organizations working for equity in Puerto Rico.