A man in Virginia could spend the rest of his life in prison for k*illing a mother of two last year because he thought she was his ex-girlfriend.
Silvia “Kelly” Vaca Abacay was ki*lled, and Richard Montano, 48, was found guilty of first-degree mur*der and setting fire to property.
She was found on August 10, 2022, having been stabbed, beaten, and then set on fire.
The horrible attack happened while Abacay, 40, was staying at the apartment of her friend Fatima Via Rojas in Fall Church. Rojas had just broken up with Montano after eight years of dating him, according to the news source.
At Montano’s trial in Fairfax County, the ki*ller was told to aim for Via Rojas but ki*lled Abacay instead because he thought she was her.
“He went straight for the jugular.” He went after the head, the neck, and the face. A prosecutor said that Abacay’s body had at least 10 blunt force injuries and 10 stab wounds. “He’s going to where it will do the most damage,” the prosecutor said.
A neighbor heard screams and called 911, which is when the police arrived. That same call was played in court as well.
He asked the jury, “Listen to the pain and anguish in Silvia’s voice as she screams for her life in that call.”
At first, Montano ran away out of a back window, but later that same day he was caught. NBC reported that a bent knife was discovered in the back of his truck.
He said he wasn’t guilty, but in the end, his lawyers weren’t able to create enough reasonable doubt.
Via Rojas said that her relationship with Montano was unstable, but she never thought he would become so violent.
“I’m sorry. “He came for me, not her, and she has to pay for something that was supposed to happen to me,” she told NBC about the death of her friend.
When asked what prison sentence he hopes for his wife’s ki*ller, Abacay’s widower, Joselo Landivar, said “jail forever,” the outlet added.
The grieving spouse was supported at the conviction Thursday by over a dozen friends and relatives.
Montano now faces up to life in prison when he is sentenced in Jan next year, according to Fox News Digital.
In addition to her husband, Abacay is survived by two children
