Emmanuel Espinoza, a pre-med student at the University of Florida, is facing charges of first-degree premeditated murder and evidence tampering. Emmanuel stabbed Elvia Espinoza, his mother, 70 times on Saturday, just as she was about to meet him after a long period of absence.
After receiving a call from his mother requesting to see him, Espinoza made the journey from Gainesville to Frostproof to spend time with her and meet relatives.
His mother had “annoyed” him since he was a kid, so he had a long-term plan to murder her, he informed the police.
He popped on his earphones and started listening to Jay-Z and Kanye West’s “No Church in the Wild” as soon as he got home. He is seen approaching his mother’s front door with a pocket knife in the footage captured by the doorbell camera. As soon as his mother answered the door, Emmanuel stabbed her many times in the stomach. She tried to flee, but he caught up with her and proceeded to stab her until she lay still.
Espinoza informed investigators that he was a pre-med student and stabbed her in specific spots to make sure she would bleed to death.
On Saturday afternoon, Emmanuel Espinoza admitted to stabbing his mother to death and called 911. He is now in arrest.
Polk County Public Schools said Elvia was a second-grade teacher at Frostproof Ben Hill Griffin Jr. Elementary. Everyone who knew and loved her, from pupils to coworkers, mourns her untimely passing. On Monday, grief counselors will be available to the community, and the school has already contacted the parents of all of her children.
At a news conference on Saturday, Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said that 21-year-old Emmanuel Espinoza, who had a 4.5 GPA and was named Frostproof High School Valedictorian in 2020, murdered his mother at her home just after 2 p.m. When they asked Espinoza why he did it, he told them the truth. The day he would give way to his emotions, he felt, he said.
According to Sheriff Judd, Espinoza contacted the police, admitted to the murder, and is now in jail. Additionally, he is cooperating with the authorities. The murder, according to Sheriff Judd, was a “truly horrible event.” The Polk County Jail has taken Espinoza into custody on charges of first-degree murder.
