East Bay family finds justice after dealer of narcotics that killed daughter is sentenced
CONCORD -- A year and a half after the death of 14-year-old Concord High School student Valentina Langhammer, her family said Thursday they're finally getting justice.
"If it were up to me, he would be in prison for the rest of his life but eight years, I think, is at least a time for him to reflect and guide his life in another path," Viviana Arenas, Valentina's mother, said.
Alejandro Urias, a former classmate of Valentina, is the man accused of selling the Percocet pill that ended Valentina's life in August 2021.
"I think this was a learning experience through pain, both for my children and us," Arenas said.
And that is why we went with them to Valentina's home.
"She was really happy. She was just a family person. She didn't go to a lot of places. She was always with us on the weekends," Valentina's father Walter Langhammer said.
Langhammer found Valentina's lifeless body after the young woman took a pill known as an "M30," a street name for a Percocet pill that a friend had given her. That friend, according to authorities, bought the drug from Alejandro Urias.
"I believe that if Valentina were offered something like crystal meth or cocaine, she probably would've said no because it's the name of a heavy drug that people get addicted to," Walter explained. "The problem with this pill is that it's very light. They say 'Oh, it's a prescription drug like Advil or aspirin' but they don't know that it's a pill made in the jungle. You don't know what percentage of fentanyl is in it and the person overdose and die."
Today, her family values the moments they lived with Valentina and are spending a lot of time with their two other children, David and Mariana.
"I have two other kids and that helps a lot. There are very nice people around, they love you, family, friends. I can't just look at one bad guy that destroyed my whole life and my kids' life and I don't know how much longer I will be here but I should be happy with the kids. If I get upset, I go into my bedroom, hang out but I didn't do anything wrong. It's his fault and I'm glad he is paying for it," Langhammer said.