Michel Escoto Drugged and Beat Newlywed Wife to Death for $1 Million Insurance Policy, Jury Rules (VIDEO)
Michel Escoto of South Florida was convicted Tuesday of murdering his newlywed wife in 2002 so he could collect $1 million from a large insurance policy he took out on her life. The 42-year-old attempted to drug her and drown her, but finally settled on beating her to death with a tire iron, prosecutors determined.
Michel Escoto had married 21-year-old Wendy Trapaga back in October 2002, but just four days later, he attempted to kill her. During their honeymoon to Key West, Escoto attempted to drug her with ground-up painkillers, but she said that her drink was too chalky, according to the Associated Press.
Just a few days later, he attempted to drown her in a Jacuzzi at the Executive Airport Motel in Miami, but couldn't get her to stay underneath the water. Later that night he drove her to a warehouse and strangled and beat her with a tire iron.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
"He took her life boldly, brazenly, for money," Gail Levine, the prosecutor, argued in her closing argument.
Escoto's plan was revealed by his ex-girlfriend Yolanda Cerillo, who testified in exchange for immunity. She explained how she planned the murder alongside Escoto and was even used as practice for drugging and drowning, The Miami Herald reported.
"I hated what she stood for. I didn't know who she was. I hated the whole situation," Cerillo said in March, NBC Miami reported. "I hated that you left. I hated that she was pregnant, then she wasn't pregnant."
Escoto, who represented himself during the trial, claimed that he and Trapaga got into an argument that night, but he dropped her off at their apartment in South Beach and left. However, the fact that the 42-year-old took out a large insurance policy made investigators suspicious, and during the trial, he only solidified his guilt by making a mess of the cross-examinations.
"He failed to attack [Cerillo's] credibility because he was not qualified to do her cross-examination," Terry Lenamon, Escoto's legal advisor, explained. "He just could not touch any of the state's witnesses."
Escoto was convicted by jury of first-degree murder. He is due in court for sentencing May 7, but his conviction requires a mandatory life sentence without the possibility of parole.
