A Connecticut jury on Tuesday convicted a man of murder and evidence tampering in the 2019 killing of his girlfriend, while the disappearance of their young daughter remains a mystery.
Jose Morales, 48, of New Haven, faces 25 to 65 years in prison when he is sentenced on July 8 for the beating death of Christine Holloway inside her home in Ansonia, about 10 miles west of New Haven.
Morales testified at the trial in Milford that he did not kill Holloway. He said he, Holloway and their daughter, Vanessa, who was 14 months old at the time, were in Holloway’s apartment when two intruders broke in. He said one of the intruders attacked Holloway with a crowbar and he was assaulted before they kidnapped Vanessa, who has never been found. Morales also said he was high on PCP at the time.
Days after the killing, authorities issued an Amber Alert for Vanessa, whose missing person case remains posted on the websites of the FBI and the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. Ansonia police said in late 2019 that Morales was a suspect in Vanessa’s disappearance, but he was never charged.
Local police said at the time that Morales lived at his parents’ home in New Haven and was cooperating with the investigation after Holloway’s body was found. Authorities added the father occasionally stayed at the Ansonia home but didn’t live there.
Morales was later arrested on weapons charges, but those charges were not related to Holloway’s death or Vanessa’s disappearance, CBS affiliate WFSB-TV previously reported.
Prosecutors argued that Morales’ story about how Halloway was killed did not match the evidence, WFSB reported.
During closing arguments on Monday, Supervisory Assistant State’s Attorney Howard Stein said the evidence showed that Morales repeatedly struck Holloway in the head with an object and tried to cover it up by cleaning up the crime scene.
Morales had admitted on the stand that he attempted to clean the apartment after Halloway was killed and had also put some of the blood-soaked evidence in a donation bin, according to WFSB.
“Why would you believe that home invaders that committed murder and kidnapped a child would leave behind a living witness? How does that make sense?” Stein asked in his closing argument.
Morales’ lawyer, Edward Gavin, in his closing argument asked the jury, “Who calls 911 before committing a homicide? No one.” The question was referring to the call Morales made before he allegedly killed Holloway. Gavin then replayed the call for the jury.
“And don’t forget, that’s Christine Holloway’s voice in the background on the call. Christine was there,” Gavin said.
Gavin declined to comment after the verdict. During his closing argument, he said there was no evidence that Morales had any intent to kill Holloway.
The jury began deliberating Monday afternoon and reached a verdict Tuesday morning after about two total hours of discussion.
Morales’s bond was increased to $2.5 million following the conviction, according to WFSB.
In Connecticut, a person who has been convicted of any offense is still eligible for bail while waiting for sentencing or an appeal.
