A man who stabbed his wife more than 70 times in a jealous rage at their Jersey City home two years ago was sentenced Friday to 40 years in prison for murder and an additional 10 years for child endangerment, NJ.com reported.
The sentences will be served consecutively, and are subject to the No Early Release Act, meaning Jose Morel, 61, must serve about 42 years in prison before he's eligible for parole.
Early on the morning of Oct. 18, 2017, Morel killed Milagros Rodriguez de Morel, 38, at their Duncan Avenue apartment. The killing occurred in front of the couple's 15-year-old son. Neighbors reportedly could hear the youth plead for his father to stop.
Morel told authorities he suspected his wife of cheating on him and skipped work to spy on her. He said he saw Rodriguez de Morel kiss another man in front of their home the day before he killed her, NJ.com also reported.
Morel tried an insanity defense, claiming he was in a trance-like state when the murder occurred, but in a June bench trial a judge rejected that argument and found him guilty of murder.
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