A Trenton man admitted Monday he pried a knife from the hands of his girlfriend and stabbed her to death after she attacked him during a jealous rage.
Jose Delgado-Febres, 39, acknowledged stabbing 27-year-old Yerika Hernandez in the back during an early-morning argument April 28, 2009 that erupted after his live-in girlfriend accused him of cheating.
Delgado-Febres fled to Guatemala and wasn't arrested until 2013. Delgado-Febres pleaded guilty to manslaughter — a reduced charge that accounts for the provocation that led to the woman’s death.
Deputy First Assistant Prosecutor Kimm Lacken said the state intends to argue for a 10-year prison term at the defendant’s June 25 sentencing while the defense, citing Hernandez’s previous threats and penchant for flying off the handle, is expected to ask for as few as five years.
While acknowledging the couple had a history of domestic disputes, Delgado-Febres said Hernandez previously threatened to kill him and cut off his penis if she caught him cheating.
On the night in question, Delgado-Febres told the court, Hernandez appeared intoxicated and lunged at him with a frying pan. She then armed herself with a knife and prepared to attack.
“Whenever she was drunk, she got crazy,” Delgado-Febres said.
Delgado-Febres subdued the woman and pried the knife from her hands. But instead of securing it and alerting authorities, Delgado-Febres plunged it into his former girlfriend’s back after being “pushed to the limit.”