At sentencing on Friday morning Judge Joseph Donohue said Francis should spend his life behind bars as a way for society to express outrage for the brutal stabbing death and rape of 32-year-old Majuly Collins and the death of her two children, 4-year-old Eduardo Almanza and 18-month-old Catherine Almanza.
During the trial, the prosecution, handled by First Assistant Prosecutor Albert Cernadas Jr. and Assistant Prosecutor William Kolano, presented a variety of evidence including DNA results that linked Francis to the crime and a confession he gave police shortly after his arrest.
According to the investigation, Francis lived at the Bayway Gardens apartment complex in Elizabeth, downstairs from Collins and her children. On December 7, 2002 Francis went to Collins’ apartment and after a botched robbery attempt, repeatedly stabbed and raped Collins. He then smothered the two children and dumped their bodies in a bathtub.
A fourth person in the apartment, Collins’ cousin Susan Vargas, was stabbed in the neck and left for dead. However, the woman survived and contacted police telling a 9-1-1 operator that the attacker was the man who lived downstairs.
On Friday, Vargas presented the court with a letter saying Francis “had not heart or human feeling. I still feel the horror of that morning. I try to forget but it is not possible.”
A full copy of the letter is attached to this release as a .PDF file. (CLICK HERE)
“Words that come to mind when I think about Alturik Francis include vile and despicable,” said Prosecutor Romankow. “He will never again be a threat to the public, and this verdict gives some justice to the memory of Majuly Collins and her children.” |
