The twisted temptress at the heart of an abduction plan that left a man burned, gagged, and on the verge of death was sentenced to eight years in jail on Thursday, with a Manhattan judge blasting her for the “heinous” act.
Valerie Rosario, 23, pled guilty in June to attempted assault and kidnapping after enticing a stranger she met on Instagram to the Bronx, where he endured abuse for 24 hours by a group of sadists demanding a $100,000 ransom in February 2022.
Judge Felicia Mennin expressed her shock at the gravity of the facts presented in court, deeming them as one of the most heinous sets of facts she has witnessed in a long time. She then proceeded to deliver the sentence that had been mutually agreed upon as part of a plea deal with the prosecutors to the defendant, Rosario.
As she spoke, her anger was palpable. “The actions you took against the victim in this case are completely deplorable. In a civilized society, we should never treat each other in such a way.”
In a surprising turn of events, Rosario entered the courtroom with her hands cuffed and her long hair braided. The room was abuzz with speculation as it was revealed that she had fired her lawyer and was considering retracting her plea. However, after a few hours of contemplation, she ultimately decided to stick with her original plea.
If Rosario had chosen to go back on the agreement, she would have been subjected to severe legal consequences. In fact, she could have been sentenced to up to 25 years in prison on charges of kidnapping and assault. It’s a good thing she followed through with the deal and avoided such a harsh punishment.
In March 2022, The Post reported exclusively that Rosario had been charged with kidnapping a 24-year-old man whom she had tricked into visiting an apartment on Marble Hill Avenue.
In the Manhattan Supreme Court on Thursday, the judge expressed disapproval of the way human beings were treated in the case presented, stating, “That’s not the way human beings should treat each other.”
After admitting to the plea deal on June 5, Rosario was recently sentenced. Initially, she informed the court that she had fired her defence attorney, George Vomvolakis, citing “ineffective assistance of counsel,” even though he had successfully negotiated a favourable agreement.
Courtroom spectators were taken aback by the sudden announcement, leaving them stunned. The presiding judge instructed the lawyers to reconvene later in the day to decide if Rosario would indeed stand trial.
Rosarion appeared to be considering facing a jury for a brief period, even though Michael Candelario, one of her supposed accomplices, was found guilty of charges including robbery and kidnapping on June 25th.
Following what appeared to be a motivational conversation with her recently hired lawyer, Michael Mullen, the two sides gathered again, and Rosario was prepared to confront her destiny.
Javier Vargas, who was arrested in the same van where the victim was discovered, was another one of her co-defendants. In May, he agreed to a plea deal and received a 10-year prison sentence.
Rosario has confessed to his crimes of kidnapping in the second degree and attempted assault in the first degree.
As per her plea deal, she will be under post-release supervision for a period of five years.
After the hearing concluded, her attorney chose not to provide any comments.
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