Texas man set to die next week begs for stay of execution – NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth

A North Texas mother is on a desperate crusade to save her son's life.

Ivan Cantu, 50, is less than a week away from his scheduled execution after being convicted of murdering his cousin James Mosqueda and his girlfriend Amy Kitchen in Mosqueda's Collin County home in 2000.

Cantu, a native of Dallas, was 28 years old when he was convicted and maintains his innocence.

“When you look at the evidence and you do that, you know clearly that I did not commit this crime,” Cantu said during a interview this week with Telemundo national.

Cantu's 2001 conviction gained national attention because of the podcast “Cousins ​​by Blood,” which Matt Duff launched in 2020.

Duff says his investigation does not prove Cantu's innocence, but does point to irregularities in his murder trial.

Cantu's mother Sylvia spoke to NBC 5 from Livingston, where she and other supporters are planning a rally to demand a stay of execution.

Cantu's execution has been stopped twice before, in 2012 and 2023.

“Ivan deserves a fair trial,” said Sylvia Cantu. “We have newly discovered evidence that should have been presented 23 years ago that can exonerate him.”

Cantu's attorney, Gena Bunn, says they have uncovered evidence that they say discredits the testimony of the prosecution's key witness — Amy Boettcher, Cantu's ex-fiancée — and casts doubt on his guilt.

According to police records from November 7, 2000, jeans and socks with drops of the victims' blood on them were found in Cantu's kitchen trash can. Boettcher told police he had committed the murders. Boettcher's brother, Jeff Boettcher, testified at trial that Cantu had told him he planned to kill Mosqueda and had tried to recruit him to “clean up” after the killing. But in 2022, a year after his sister Amy died At age 44, Jeff Boettcher recanted his testimony, claiming he had been under the influence of drugs and that the conversation “never happened.”

“He took back his words because it never happened,” Cantu's mother said. “He didn't want an innocent man to die because of him.”

NBC 5 reached out to Collin County District Attorney Greg Willis for comment. Willis provided the following statement:

“I remain utterly convinced that Ivan Cantu brutally murdered two innocent victims in 2000. My conviction is anchored in the irrefutable evidence presented at trial, bolstered by more than two decades of exhaustive state and federal post-conviction appeals. This compelling evidence includes DNA analysis, fingerprint identification, ballistics matching, and corroborating witness testimony. I firmly believe that justice was done in this case and that the verdict of a Collin County jury on February 28 should be carried out.”

Friday, February 23 is Sylvia Cantu's birthday, she remains hopeful.

“The only birthday I want is Ivan, the only present is him,” she said. “I just want a chance to have a life with my family back and Ivan home.”