Almost 30 years after the death of the beloved “Queen of Tejano,” Selena Quintanilla-Pérez, her murderer, Yolanda Saldívar, is seeking to “set the story straight.” She plans on doing this in a two-part docuseries with Oxygen True Crime titled “Selena & Yolanda: The Secrets Between Them.”
“After so many years, I think it’s time to set the story straight,” Saldívar says in the trailer for the docuseries. “My family gathered the evidence and it showed different versions of what was going on.”
Saldívar shot and fatally wounded Selena on March 31, 1995 after being confronted about embezzling funds. At the time, Saldívar was president of Selena’s fan club. She was also the manager of Selena’s boutiques, Selena Etc., in Corpus Christi and San Antonio, Texas, as well as being in control of Selena’s business checking accounts. In his book titled “To Selena, With Love,” Selena’s husband, Chris Pérez, revealed that Saldívar was also helping Selena expand the business to include a Mexico location. Saldívar was a trusted family friend, even holding a key to Selena’s home.
Martin Gomez, who worked as a fashion designer for Selena, previously told The Washington Post that Saldívar was “vindictive” and “very possessive” of Selena. Gomez also stated that Saldívar would “play so many mind games, say people had said things they hadn’t said.”
Selena was said to have loyally defended Saldívar in the face of criticism from friends and Selena Etc. employees until inconsistencies in company finances made issues impossible to ignore. Selena reportedly fired Saldívar over the phone just days before her untimely death.
On Oct. 26, 1995, Saldívar was found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to life with the possibility of parole. She will be eligible for parole on March 30, 2025.
In the docuseries, the convicted killer will open up about her complex relationship with the Tejano star. For the first time, Saldívar’s family will also be speaking out about what they know about the women’s relationship, stating that there is more to the story than the public has been told and that they are planning to reveal secrets about Selena.
“I was scared. I was frightened,” says Saldívar in the trailer. “I knew her secrets and I think that people deserve to know the truth.”
According to Oxygen, viewers can also expect to hear from, “the hostage negotiator who spent nine hours on the phone with Saldívar after she shot Selena, the Corpus Christi Police Department detectives who were on the scene, the prosecutors who put Saldívar on trial and journalists who cover Selena and Latinx culture.”
The series will premiere on Oxygen on Feb. 17 and 18 at 8 p.m. EST. The episodes will be streaming on Peacock the day after they air.
