SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. — Wednesday was an emotional day in court, as 37 years after investigators said a man sexually assaulted a killed a woman, his former cellmate told jurors the suspect confessed to the murder.
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Deputies said Danny Emitt, murdered Eveline Aguilar in her Winter Park apartment in 1986.
Prosecutors have rested their case, and believe the evidence presented Wednesday is strong, focusing on the DNA evidence that links Emitt to the murder.
Emitt has repeatedly denied ever meeting Aguilar or even being in her apartment, but palm prints on the window sill and DNA evidence found on the victim tell a different story.
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As does Jeff Murphy, Emitt’s former cellmate at the Seminole County Jail.
“That man right there is a monster,” Murphy said. “He is the life embodiment of the boogeyman.”
Murphy said Emitt approached him several times in the medical pod, asking him for advice about his case. Emitt told murphy he would buy cocaine from a dealer in the San Jose Apartments and would often see Aguilar, who lived on the second floor. Emitt told Murphy he planned to rob her one night.
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Murphy broke down multiple times during his testimony, reliving the details he had been told by Emitt. Murphy said Emitt admitted to stabbing Aguilar multiple times and raping her.
“It was just brutal,” Murphy said. “It was just I’ll never forget it. It was like he was ordering a cup of coffee, just like it was nothing. And that’s one of the reasons, one of the very important reasons I reached out to the investigators.”
The trial resumes Thursday, and the jury could get the case by the afternoon.
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