Julio Aponte, who bludgeoned his wife Maria Kelly to death with a crowbar at ... trends now
A man who beat his wife to death with a crowbar in Manhattan has been sentenced to 20-years-to-life in prison - after being filmed committing the heinous act by a bystander.
Julio Aponte, now 65, was handed the stern sentence Wednesday - more than two years after leaving wife Maria Kelly, 49, barely breathing at a Washington Heights bus stop.
The attack happened on June 14, 2021, and saw Aponte cuffed a few blocks away after fleeing on a motorcycle. It left Kelly - a public school secretary with two kids - injured and on life support, which she was taken off less than a week later.
After his arrest, which happened after he called the cops on himself, Aponte confessed to cops he attacked his wife - after she left him the month before to live with her mother. He was heard accusing her of cheating while beating her to death.
Initially hit with charges of attempted murder and assault, he pleaded guilty to murder in the second degree in June - after charges were upgraded due to Kelly dying four days later. DA Alvin Brag decried Aponte's actions in a statement after the sentencing hearing.
Julio Aponte, 65, is seen during his sentencing hearing in Manhattan Supreme Court Wednesday, more than two years after killing his then estranged wife at a Manhattan bus stop
The June 2021 attack left Kelly - a public school secretary who had two kids with Aponte - on life support, which she was taken off less than a week later. She then died from her injuries
'Maria Kelly’s life was taken too soon when her husband viciously pummeled her in the head with a crowbar while on her way to work, leaving her for dead on the street,' Bragg said of the defendant, who was handcuffed during his hearing.
'Now, [Aponte] is facing significant accountability for this chilling and horrific attack.'
The lawman, whose office used footage filmed by a bystander to help their case against the suspect, added: 'I hope that this sentence brings Ms. Kelly’s family, friends and loved ones a sense of relief, comfort and justice.'
A masked Aponte showed little emotion during the hearing, which was attended by members of his family. Among those present was his adult daughter Elizabeth, who also chastised her dad's actions.
A NYPD transit officer at the time of the murder, Elizabeth was heard telling her father after a judge announced his sentence: 'I hope you rot in prison.
'I hate you so much.'
A statement from the DA's office went on to describe the attack - which happened on June 14, 2021. after Aponte confronted his wife near the bus stop on 163rd Street and Fort Washington Avenue as she was headed to PS/MS 161 in West Harlem.
An argument ensued, culminating with Aponte brandishing a crow
