Man Gets 45 Years In Willimantic Hot Oil Murder Case

WILLIMANTIC, CT — A defendant in 2018 murder in Willimantic is to spend nearly a half-century in prison.

Windham State's Attorney Anne F. Mahoney, announced Friday that Julio Cruz Cabrera, formerly of Willimantic, was sentenced to 45 years in prison to be followed by 10 years special parole in the 2018 case.

On Oct. 2, of that year, Willimantic Police were summoned to the home of the victim, Angeanett Martinez-Acevedo, after a neighbor and her children found her dead, according to case records.

Citizen tips led to identifying Cruz Cabrera as the suspected killer and notified police as to his whereabouts. Western District Major Crime Squad detectives, working with New York City Police Department officers, interviewed Cruz Cabrera, case records show. In successive interviews with the Eastern District Major Crime Squad and Willimantic police detectives, Cruz Cabrera confessed to burning Martinez-Acevedo with a pot of hot oil, strangling her with an electrical cord, and suffocating her with a pillow, according to case records.

Cruz Cabrera pleaded guilty to Murder and Assault in the First Degree on March 18 of this year.

"We thank the Willimantic citizens who cooperated with law enforcement," Mahoney said. "We want to recognize the extraordinary teamwork of the Willimantic Police Department, Connecticut State Police and New York City police in bringing Cruz Cabrera to justice. We send our deepest condolences to Ms. Martinez-Acevedo's mother and children."

The case was prosecuted by Assistant State's Attorney Marissa N. Goldberg.