Anthonieska Avilés pleads guilty to murder of Gabriela Nicole Pratts and defends her mother
Anthonieska Avilés Cabrera pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and will receive 37 and a half years in prison. Through tears, she claimed that her mother Elvia is innocent.
Avilés Cabrera accepts guilt for Pratts murder and says her mother was unjustly convicted
According to metro.pr, Anthonieska Avilés Cabrera pleaded guilty to the murder of teenager Gabriela Nicole Pratts, and in doing so asserted through tears that her mother, Elvia Cabrera, had no responsibility in the crime.
"My mother is innocent and all the witnesses at her trial have lied," Avilés Cabrera stated during judicial proceedings held this week.
Elvia Cabrera was sentenced last Thursday to 102 years in prison after being found guilty of her involvement in Pratts' murder. The mother's sentence came days before her daughter formalised her agreement with the Public Ministry.
As part of the agreement reached with the prosecutor's office, Avilés Cabrera pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and to a violation of the Firearms Act. The agreed sentence is 37 years and six months in prison for the murder charge, plus six months and one day for the firearms-related offence, with mitigating circumstances.
The guilty plea came after it emerged that the prosecutor's office and the defence were holding conversations about a possible agreement. During the morning, the start of the proceedings was postponed until the afternoon whilst the parties evaluated that alternative.
Judge Juan Reyes met with representatives of the public ministry and the defence in his office before resuming the session. When the proceedings resumed, the judge administered the oath to the accused and questioned her about the procedure and the implications of waiving a jury trial.
Upon her arrival at court in the morning, Avilés Cabrera was observed to be nervous and tearful. Her lawyer, María Soledad Sáez Matos, noted that the case has deeply affected the entire family of the accused.
"It has been very difficult for this family from the beginning, and Elvia's sentence is still very recent. This is a very strong pain for this entire family; it has been difficult even for the lawyers. So I perfectly understand how she feels," Sáez Matos said.
Source: Google News PR — Crime