Photo: Brad Horrigan/AP/Shutterstock
Richard Dabate, the Connecticut man who was convicted in May for the2015 “Fitbit murder"of his wife Connie, has been sentenced to 65 years in prison.
Despite this, Richard, 46, continued to maintain his innocence Thursday and plans to appeal the case, his lawyer Trent LaLima told multiple outlets, includingNBC News.
Prior to this, Richard claimed he had taken his two sons to the bus stop, returned home to grab a “work shirt” and left for work at about 8:30 a.m. He added that Connie was still home getting ready for a fitness class at the YMCA at the time.
Richard and Connie Dabate.
Using records from Connie’s Fitbit, both of their cellphones, computers and house alarm logs, police said Richard logged into a computer at the house at about 9:01 a.m. At 9:04 a.m. he emailed his work supervisor, saying an alarm at the house had gone off and that he’d have to return to check on it, according to the arrest warrant.
Connie’s Fitbit registered movement inside the house at 9:23 a.m. She was also active on Facebook between 9:40 a.m. and 9:46 a.m., posting videos to her page on her iPhone from home, according to the warrant.
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The last recorded distance her Fitbit tracked was 1,217 feet between 9:18 a.m. and 10:05 a.m. Detectives concluded that the total distance it would take Connie to walk from the car to the basement, where they found her body, was no more than 125 feet, according to the warrant.
During his interview with detectives, Richard admitted to an extramarital affair resulting in a pregnancy, although he was vague with police as to whether his wife knew about the affair or the pregnancy, the warrant said.
Richard Debate at Rockville Court.
“The trial was not about Fitbit,” Wayne Rioux, a spokesperson for Connie’s family said after the jury convicted Richard on all counts, reported The Associated Press. “The trial was about the cold-blooded, planned murder of Connie Margotta Dabate.”
Members of Connie’s family stated in May that Debate’s conviction enabled them “to get a little bit of closure,” even though it would not bring Connie back.
“As a family, we can move forward,” Connie’s brother, Keith Margotta, said outside the courthouse following the sentencing, per NBC.
source: people.com
