Who is Alicia Keator? Texas woman faces 25 years in prison for murdering disabled man after agreeing to help him
HOUSTON, TEXAS: Alice Keator, a Texas woman admitted to murdering a disabled 65-year-old man after she suffocated and robbed him on Christmas Day.
The 40-year-old woman tricked the man into believing that she would help him with his daily living activities and moved into his home, reports Law and Crime.
Alicia Keator committed the horrific crime with her boyfriend
District Court Judge Frank Aguilar ordered Keator to serve a sentence of 25 years behind bars for the slaying of John Henry Fernandez.
Following the sentencing hearing, Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg stated, "The elderly and disabled people in our community are extremely vulnerable to becoming victims of violence."
"This couple took advantage of this man’s kindness and deserves to spend decades in prison," Ogg added.
Keator and her boyfriend Marcus Donnell Gilbert, 49, admitted to the brutal slaying of Fernandez in 2018 and pleaded guilty to murder, according to a news release from the DA’s Office.
On January 2, 2018, the victim's body was found inside his apartment by maintenance workers at the complex.
Prosecutors stated that Fernandez was discovered "with his hands and feet bound and mouth taped shut," and "he had also been suffocated."
The victim who used a wheelchair required assistance with his daily living activities and Keator took advantage of his situation.
Before the 65-year-old man's death, she had been living in his home for about a month.
"Instead of helping, [Keator] allowed her boyfriend to routinely visit, culminating in the planned robbery and killing of Fernandez on Christmas Day 2017," read the release.
"After concerned neighbors alerted apartment management that Fernandez had not been heard from for several days, maintenance workers found his body locked inside his bedroom," the release added.
What are the charges against Alicia Keator?
Shortly after the elderly man's body was found, authorities with the Baytown Police Department arrested both Keator and Gilbert.
Initially, the duo was charged with one count each of capital murder, facing the possibility of a life sentence.
However, Gilbert entered a plea deal with prosecutors earlier this year and in exchange for a sentence of 60 years jail term, he pleaded guilty to one count of murder.
However, before Keator entered her guilty plea, she had not entered into a deal with the DA’s Office.
According to prosecutors, Judge Aguilar learned during Keator's sentencing hearing that she had "provided critical evidence against her co-defendant and had agreed to testify against him, even without the promise of leniency."