Dead Ringer

48 Hours

Former professional boxer Ramon Sosa discovers his wife Lulu is plotting to have him murdered for financial gain following a bitter divorce and gym

Key takeaways

• Ramon Sosa, owner of Woodland Boxing and Fitness in Houston, overheard his wife Lulu discussing a hitman with friend Mundo in June 2015.
• Mundo coordinated an undercover sting using disposable phones to simulate negotiations while alerting Precinct 3 Constable's Office for backup.

Main topics

• Murder-for-hire conspiracy
• Undercover sting operation

Notable quotes

I'm the only person alive that has ever walked out of his own grave.

Conclusion

The episode highlights how a meticulously planned sting operation succ

Transcript preview

Speaker 1 (0:08) Ever think in your wildest dreams that someone might want to kill you? Speaker 3 (0:15) I would have never thought that anyone would want to kill me ever in my life. Ever. Speaker 5 (0:19) My dad's a sweet guy. I mean, he's very calm. He's full of laughter. He's full of energy. He's like a life of the party. Speaker 3 (0:28) My life was once beautiful, wonderful. I have three wonderful kids. I was married to a beautiful lady. Hi, guys. My Speaker 5 (0:36) name is Lulu Speaker 3 (0:37) So. My business was booming. And I'm Ramos Sosa, head coach, boxing. Welcome to Woodland Boxing and Fitness. Speaker 7 (0:47) Outside the ring, boxers, they're very loving. They want love from their fans, and they want to give it back. They're the nicest people. I Speaker 3 (0:58) was a very, very low-key kind of guy. That's the farthest thing from my mind that somebody wanted me dead. Speaker 2 (1:04) I remember walking in one night as the gym was in its final hours before it closed. I remember a conversation was taking place about Hitman. Speaker 1 (1:16) What was it about this conversation that caught your attention? Speaker 2 (1:19) What caught my attention was whose name came up. Did they mention Ramon? Yes. Speaker 2 (1:26) Now my focus is just on talking to Ramon. I said, Mundo, you're Speaker 3 (1:29) joking around. What's going on? Ramon was Speaker 2 (1:32) like, don't Speaker 3 (1:32) play with me like that. This is some serious stuff. And then he said, I seen that look on people's eye before they want to kill somebody. Speaker 6 (1:40) It's like a screenplay, something straight out of Hollywood. And it would fit right in with every other horror flick that we've seen in the past. Except this is real. It is real. Speaker 1 (1:50) We're taking you inside the twists and turns of a complex sting operation. And here's what makes it unique. The target of the murder-for-hire plot becomes an undercover operative to catch the person who wants him dead. Speaker 1 (2:08) So, Lieutenant, where are we heading? We are heading to what we refer to Speaker 6 (2:12) as the dig site. Speaker 3 (2:13) This is the actual grave where I was supposed to be dead. They had me lay down with my hands behind my back, my head turned. There was a photographer out there. All I could hear was just the clicking of the camera. Speaker 5 (2:25) That was somebody's choice. They told someone, this is what I want. This is how I want you to do it. And this is where I want you to put him. It's horrifying. Speaker 3 (2:34) I saw myself in the grave dead, literally. I was supposed to be dead. I'm the only person alive that has ever walked out of his own grave. Speaker 1 (2:55) To this day, Ramon Sosa finds it surreal that he was the target in a murder-for-hire plot. Speaker 3 (3:03) I would have never believed it. I would have thought it was just something that you only see in movies or on TV. Speaker 3 (3:12) I would have never thought that it would be happening to me. Speaker 8 (3:19) He appeared to have the perfect life. Speaker 8 (3:23) From rubbing shoulders with celebrities like Hugh Hefner, to owning a successful boxing gym in Houston. Speaker 8 (3:33) And he had found the love of his life, Lulu. Speaker 3 (3:36) Life was very sweet. Speaker 8 (3:41) Beth Blair is a friend of the Sosa's. I Speaker 4 (3:43) saw two fun, outgoing, love to party, love to get together with people and have barbecues, and the more people, the merrier. Speaker 8 (3:56) Ramon's zest for life started early. He was born with a fighting spirit. Originally from Carolina, Puerto Rico, Ramon grew up boxing with his father. Speaker 3 (4:07) I fell in love with the sport of boxing. I saw how the training and there was a few world champions that trained there. And I just loved it from the time I was little. Speaker 1 (4:17) After training for more than 10 years, Ramon took a shot at the pro boxing circuit. Speaker 3 (4:24) They used to call me the Puerto Rican Express. When I turned 17, I turned pro. So Speaker 1 (4:29) did you ever knock anybody out in the ring? Oh, yeah, there Speaker 3 (4:31) was a Speaker 1 (4:31) lot of knockouts. Speaker 8 (4:34) Eventually, the Puerto Rican Express ran out of steam. Ramon hung up his boxing gloves and decided to pursue the American dream. Speaker 3 (4:43) I went back to school, got my education in Starca, and I still kept training. I always wanted to be involved with boxing in some kind of way. Speaker 8 (4:53) Ramon got married young and had three children with his first wife. He eventually settled down in Houston, Texas, where he opened a boxing gym of his own where he could continue to teach his passion. I Speaker 7 (5:06) think Ramon is a nice, humble guy, friendly, family-oriented. Raul Marquez is an Olympic boxer and Showtime Speaker 8 (5:17) commentator. Speaker 8 (5:20) He is also Ramon's longtime sparring buddy. Speaker 7 (5:23) Anybody that goes in the ring has got to be tough. It's got to be mentally tough. I think he's physically and mentally tough, but like I always say, he wasn't tough enough to beat me, beat my butt. Speaker 1 (5:35) So who is the better fighter, you or Ramon? Speaker 7 (5:38) Rekurs speak for themselves. Just look it up. Look it up. Speaker 1 (5:45) Ramon's first marriage ended in 2000. By 2007, Ramon, then 40, was ready to get back in the ring. But this time, he was looking for a different kind of knockout. Speaker 3 (5:58) And a friend of mine said, hey man, there's a place where they play live music. I heard there's a lot of beautiful ladies out there, Latina ladies. Speaker 1 (6:06) Ramon decided to go and see this place for himself. And as soon as he arrived, someone special caught his eye. Speaker 3 (6:14) The place was packed. And I noticed her. Speaker 1 (6:17) Are you thinking, man, I'm fighting out of my weight class here? Yeah, Speaker 3 (6:20) yeah. She was very, very attractive. She looked very nice. And she danced very, very well. So I just kept my eye out on her. The woman he noticed was Lulu Durantes. Next thing I know, she walks by me and she steps on my toe. Now, do you think she might have stepped Speaker 1 (6:37) on your foot on purpose? Oh, she sure did. She even admitted later on. Speaker 1 (6:43) Ramon and Lulu had an instant connection. He Speaker 3 (6:46) knows it. I mean, as soon as we started dancing, we didn't get off the dance floor for the whole night. Speaker 1 (6:51) Ramone still remembers the very first song they danced to, a popular Latin tune that the Salsa Band played that night. It would become their song. Speaker 2 (7:04) Good night. Speaker 3 (7:09) Brujeria is a song by El Gran Como de Puerto Rico. Speaker 1 (7:12) And it means what? Speaker 3 (7:13) Witchcraft. Witchcraft. Speaker 1 (7:15) And forgive the pun, but you were under her spell, right? Basically, yes, I was under her spell. Spellbound, after dancing the night away, Ramone went home with Lulu, and the rest was history. Speaker 4 (7:28) She doted on him. She was great. Speaker 1 (7:31) Beth had Speaker 8 (7:32) a ringside seat to their relationship. Speaker 4 (7:35) She'd bring him coffee and get up every morning with him and make his breakfast. And I always just thought it was really neat, their relationship. You know, they got along really well. Speaker 7 (7:45) They looked like a very, very happy couple. They would compliment each other. They were into each other. Speaker 1 (7:51) After less than a year of dating, Ramon dropped to one knee. Speaker 3 (7:55) I proposed to her, it was around Christmas time. I remember I proposed to her and she started crying. He cried and cried and cried, you know. And she was happy, you know Speaker 3 (8:08) But she couldn't wait to get married. Speaker 8 (8:10) Lulu Durantes became Lulu Sosa on March 15th, 2009. Speaker 3 (8:15) She treated me well. She treated me like a king. Speaker 8 (8:19) Lulu, originally from Mexico, came to the United States with her son and daughter. What Speaker 1 (8:25) brought her to Houston? Speaker 4 (8:28) You know, to have a new life, a better life for her children. To, you know, to start again. Because she was divorced in Mexico and then she come here. Speaker 1 (8:38) Natalia Flores is a hairstylist and one of Lulu's closest friends. She met Lulu back in 2007. Speaker 4 (8:46) She was a nice friend. A good mom, a good worker, a hard worker. Speaker 1 (8:52) Lulu was often generous with her friends. If Speaker 4 (8:56) I would say I love that ring, she'd take it off and give it to me. I'd always be careful to say I don't like that because she'd end up giving it to me. Speaker 8 (9:04) In 2010, Ramon opened a second gym. This time Lulu was by his side. She kept the books and became a personal trainer. Speaker 5 (9:15) We offer boxing, kickboxing, and fitness Speaker 3 (9:17) training. Come check us out. Speaker 8 (9:19) How big