BRICK, N.J. (WCBS 880 ) -- A 49-year-old woman was found guilty of using a wine chiller to beat her wife to death in 2020, the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office announced Friday.
Mayra Gavilanez-Alectus was found guilty of murder in connection with the death of her wife, Rebecca Gavilanez-Alectus, 32, following a nearly three-week jury trial.
The jury concluded beyond a reasonable doubt that Gavilanez-Alectus purposely or knowingly caused the death of Rebecca Gavilanez-Alectus, or that she purposely or knowingly caused serious bodily injury to Rebecca Gavilanez-Alectus which resulted in her death.
The jury also found Gavilanez-Alectus guilty of possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and unlawful possession of a weapon and the jury determined that Gavilanez-Alectus was guilty of using a cylindrical container-shaped wine chiller in the commission of the murder.
Rebecca Gavilanez-Alectus was found in an upstairs bedroom inside the couple's Creek Road townhouse in Brick Township on May 17, 2020 by Brick police, who were called for a report of an unresponsive female, officials said.
The following day, the Ocean County Medical Examiner performed a post-mortem examination of the victim's body, and determined the manner of her death to be a homicide.
Further investigation determined that a "cylindrical container used for the purpose of chilling wine" was the murder weapon, authorities said.
Mayra Gavilanez-Alectus was arrested four days after the incident in Houston, Texas and has been held in the Ocean County jail since she was extradited to New Jersey.
She faces up to life in prison when she is sentenced on Nov. 17.
