Missouri man who killed, buried wife sentenced to 28 years

COLUMBIA, Mo. – A justice connected Friday sentenced a Missouri antheral to 28 years successful situation — the maximum helium could enforce — for the 2019 sidesplitting of his wife, whose assemblage helium buried successful a authorities parkland and whose decease helium misled the authorities astir for much than a year.

The condemnation Judge Brouck Jacobs gave to 26-year-old Joseph Elledge was the 1 jurors recommended successful November erstwhile they convicted Elledge of second-degree execution successful the sidesplitting of his wife, Mengqi Ji. Ji, who was 28 erstwhile she died, met Elledge aft she moved to the U.S. from China to survey engineering astatine the University of Missouri.

Before Jacobs handed down his sentence, which couldn't person exceeded the jury's recommended one, Boone County Prosecuting Attorney Dan Knight called for him to enactment Elledge down bars for arsenic agelong arsenic helium could, KOMU-TV reported.

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“The suspect deserves nary interruption due to the fact that helium displayed nary remorse,” Knight said.

Knight besides called Elledge the “biggest complainer successful the past of the Boone County Jail,” noting that helium filed 28 grievances astir its somesthesia and the sound made by its heating system, plumbing, faucets, toilets and TV. Elledge called the noises “cruel and antithetic punishment.”

Elledge's second-degree execution condemnation volition necessitate him to service astatine slightest 85% of his condemnation earlier helium would beryllium eligible for parole.

Elledge reported Ji missing successful October 2019, prompting months of extended searches. Her remains were recovered past March successful a parkland adjacent Columbia, wherever the mates lived.

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During the trial, Knight described Elledge arsenic a “stone acold killer” and argued that helium was blameworthy of first-degree execution due to the fact that helium intentionally killed Ji. Prosecutors utilized societal media posts, audio tapes and a diary Elledge kept to papers the couple’s volatile relationship.

But Elledge said Ji’s death was accidental. He said Ji fell and deed her caput connected Oct. 8, 2019, aft helium pushed her during an argument, and that helium recovered her dormant successful furniture the adjacent morning. He said helium panicked, enactment her assemblage successful the trunk of her car and didn't study what happened portion helium tried to determine what to do.

On Oct. 10, 2019, with the couple’s then-year-old girl successful the car, Elledge drove to Rock Bridge State Park, astir 5 miles (8 kilometers) southbound of Columbia. There, helium dug a sedate and buried Ji not acold from wherever helium had projected to her. He past returned location and reported her missing.

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Elledge's lawyer Scott Rosenblum argued that his lawsuit was awkward and made “unbelievably dumb” decisions aft Ji died, but that helium ne'er intended to termination his woman and should not person been charged with murder. Rosenblum filed a question for a caller trial, but Jacobs denied it.

Elledge said helium discovered successful the days earlier Ji's decease that she had been exchanging sexually suggestive messages connected societal media with a antheral from China. He besides testified that the couple’s narration suffered due to the fact that of hostility caused by her parents, who moved from China to unrecorded with them aft their girl was calved successful October 2018.

The mates met successful 2015 astatine Nanova, a institution that makes dental products, wherever Ji was Elledge’s supervisor. They began dating the pursuing twelvemonth and yet traveled to China, wherever Elledge asked Ji’s parents for support to wed her. The mates joined successful 2017.

Ji earned a master’s grade successful mechanical and aerospace engineering from the University of Missouri successful December 2014. Elledge was a pupil astatine the assemblage erstwhile his woman died.

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The family’s attorney, Amy Salladay, said successful a connection that Ji's parents, Ke Ren and Xiaolin Ji, are grateful that Jacobs upheld the jurors' recommended sentence.

“Her hubby received 1 twelvemonth for each twelvemonth of her life," Salladay said. “This doesn’t bring her back, it doesn’t marque the nightmare of waking up each time and not being capable to speech oregon spot your kid spell distant but it is justness successful presumption of what the American tribunal strategy tin provide."

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