Geneva Man Gets Life In Prison For 2024 Murder Of Girlfriend, Her Son: Prosecutors

GENEVA, IL — A Geneva man found guilty of murdering his girlfriend and her son in December 2024 was sentenced to natural life in prison, the Kane County State's Attorney's Office announced Thursday.

Alejandro Cota, 52, agreed to the prison term in exchange for a guilty plea to two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Christina Chavira, 47, and her 13-year-old son, who authorities identified as D.C.

Geneva police responded at 8 p.m. the day after Christmas a year and a half ago to the 2700 block of Emma's Way for a "fatal domestic violence 911 call." Officers forcibly entered the residence after no one answered the front door and found the 13-year-old and 47-year-old with stab wounds and unresponsive, Patch reported.

The boy was stabbed 37 times with multiple knives, including several that penetrated his skull and one that severed his spinal cord, according to a report from the Daily Herald. That night, police found Cota on the roof of the residence with $5,000 in cash on him.

Christina Chavira was treated by medics on-site before she was transferred to Northwestern Medicine Delnor Hospital, where she was pronounced dead, according to the state's attorney's office. Her son was airlifted to Loyola University Medical Center but also succumbed to his wounds.

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The preliminary findings of the Kane County Coroner's Office indicated Chavira's cause of death to be multiple stab wounds. The Cook County Medical Examiner's autopsy on the boy found his manner of death to be homicide by multiple stab wounds.

"The defendant committed a brutal and senseless act of violence that took the lives of a mother and her young son, leaving an indelible mark on their loved ones and our community," State's Attorney Jamie Mosser said in a statement. "With this verdict, we achieve a measure of justice for the victims and their family, and we hold the accused accountable for these horrific crimes. In my view, this is precisely the kind of case for which the death penalty should exist since even a sentence of natural life imprisonment seems inadequate when measured against the innocent lives that were taken."