A man accused of brutally murdering a 30-year-old woman by stabbing her to death with several knives has pled guilty to manslaughter, prosecutors in Queens said Friday.
Edwin Sarmiento now faces 24 years in prison after pleading guilty to manslaughter in the first degree for the death of Juliet Ximena Galindo Puentes, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said.
The 31-year-old Queens man had been accused of stabbing the victim on Feb. 8, 2020, inside the bedroom of a home the two shared, after a heated argument, prosecutors said.
Following the exchange, they said Sarmiento took a knife and stabbed the woman several times. Then, he allegedly went into the kitchen to grab a larger knife and stabbed her a few more times after breaking down the door to the room she was hiding inside.
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Prosecutors said Sarmiento fled the apartment and was picked up by officers at a nearby gas station where he was found in blood-soaked clothes. Officers also recovered a bag in Sarmiento's possession filled with money, phones, and passports, they added.
“The defendant has now admitted to the brutal slaying of a young woman. The victim was stabbed with at least two different knives and sustained multiple puncture wounds," Katz said Friday.
Sarmiento is scheduled for a sentencing hearing on March 25. Contact information for his attorney was not immediately known.
