Man sentenced to 45 years in prison for role in 2019 murder of Cy-Lakes HS classmate, records say

HARRIS COUNTY, Texas (KTRK) -- A Katy man has been sentenced to spend the next 45 years behind bars for his role in the murder of a former Cypress Lakes High School student in 2019, according to court records.

The video above is from ABC13's Live Streaming Channel.

A judge sentenced Jose Varela, 24, after pleading guilty to murder for killing 22-year-old Zuhyr Hamza Kaleem.

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On April 27, the two classmates agreed to meet at Varela's home to make a marijuana deal. When Kaleem arrived, another man, Eric Aguilar, was at the residence with Varela.

According to records, that is when Aguilar and Varela closed the garage door to make the deal, and Aguilar fatally shot Kaleem after an altercation broke out between the trio.

Both Varela and Aguilar then reportedly took Kaleem's body to Grimes County, where his remains were burned, and drove the victim's car to Mexico to avoid suspicions.

Kaleem's family filed a missing person's report and used his brothers' knowledge as software engineers to be able to track Varela as the last person to contact Kaleem.

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An investigation by the Harris County Sheriff's Office revealed a third suspect was present at the time of the murder.

Shortly after, all three men were arrested. Aguilar was charged with capital murder and sentenced to life in prison in November.

The third suspect was charged with capital murder in the case, which is still pending, according to officials.

"These defendants thought they had gotten away with murder and had moved on with their lives, but they had not counted on the victim's brothers and law enforcement relentlessly pursuing Kaleem's whereabouts," Assistant District Attorney Tiffany Dupree said.