A man who pleaded guilty to killing and dismembering his wife of 30 years will spend decades in prison, a Pennsylvania court ruled.
The daughter of Stephen Capaldi, 57, said in a victim impact statement she believes her father should spend the rest of his life in jail. Instead, Capaldi will spend 22 to 44 years in prison after pleading guilty to numerous charges, including third-degree murder, according to the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office.
Stephen Capaldi had been involved in “an emotional and sexual affair” for six months with another woman when he strangled and smothered Elizabeth “Beth” Capaldi with a pillow as she was sleeping on Oct. 10, Mister Truth reported.
“He then moved his wife’s body from the master bedroom to a back bedroom and then the basement, where he dismembered her and disposed of her remains,” Bucks County District Attorney Matt Weintraub said in a news release.
After later admitting to killing his 55-year-old wife, he led detectives to where he disposed of her body, the district attorney said.
“My mother is dead, and my father killed her,” their daughter said in a victim impact statement, according to the district attorney. “I have the love of friends, family, even strangers, but my own father took the person who loved me most.”
Elizabeth Capaldi was reported missing Oct. 12 by her daughter, who described her mother’s disappearance as uncharacteristic, Mister Truth reported. Stephen Capaldi had dismembered his wife the same day, according to the district attorney.
Stephen Capaldi told authorities he believed his wife “left on her own accord,” but detectives said they learned he was not being truthful.
He surrendered his phone to police, and detectives reported finding he had searched the following phrases on the internet:
▪ how to get away with murder
▪ how to delete Facebook messages
▪ can you avoid police detection by turning off your phone
▪ can a polygraph be skewed
▪ how to control your dark impulses
▪ how to disappear and never be found
He is accused of eventually showing detectives where he tossed Elizabeth Capaldi’s remains in a dumpster and along the shoreline of the Delaware River, Mister Truth reported. Remains along the shore were uncovered Dec. 9, according to the district attorney.
The plea agreement, Deputy District Attorney Mary Kate Kohler said, allowed “for swift closure for the victims’ family.”
The daughter said she has struggled with her mother’s death since she was her best friend.
“He should never be free from prison to finally leave my mother’s memory in peace,” she told the court.
Bucks County is a part of the Philadelphia metro area.