Illinois man sentenced after stabbing girlfriend to death in front of mother
Anthony Jimenez | DuPage County Sheriff's Office
VILLA PARK, Ill. - A Villa Park man has been sentenced to 55 years in prison for stabbing his 24-year-old girlfriend to death during an argument at his apartment in 2024.
Anthony Jimenez, 28, must serve 100% of his sentence in the Illinoid Department of Corrections before he can be eligible for parole.
He was sentenced Thursday after pleading guilty to one count of first-degree murder on May 8, according to the DuPage County State's Attorney's Office.
"I stabbed my girlfriend in the neck"
The backstory:
Jimenez was arrested after Villa Park police responded to a domestic disturbance at his apartment shortly before 11 a.m. on July 17, 2024, in the 1600 block of South Michigan Avenue. During the emergency call, Jimenez told the dispatcher, "I stabbed my girlfriend in the neck," prosecutors said.
When officers arrived, they found Jimenez at the door with blood on his hands and chest. Inside the apartment, officers found Jessica Reyes bleeding on the floor of a back bedroom. She was taken to a local hospital where she later died.
Timeline:
Investigators learned Jimenez and Reys had argued earlier that morning. Reyes initially left the apartment by climbing down from the third-floor balcony after Jimenez allegedly blocked the door and prevented her from leaving, prosecutors said.
The two later spoke in the parking lot and returned to the apartment, so Reyes could collect her belongings. The argument resumed, and as Reyes gathered her things, Jimenez pulled out a knife and stabbed her in the side of the head, according to prosecutors.
As Reyes fought back, Jimenez continued stabbing her multiple times in the neck, face, arms, chest and hands. He stopped only after his mother entered the room, prosecutors said.
Jimenez has been held at the DuPage County Jail since a judge ordered him detained before trial in July 2024.
"No one should have to live in fear"
What they're saying:
"October is domestic violence awareness month, and I think it is important that we remember that no one should have to live in fear of their husband, wife, significant other, or other family members," DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin said in a statement. "This tragic case is a stark reminder that domestic violence must never be tolerated or excused, as doing so could result in deadly consequences."
The Source: The information in this report came from the DuPage County State’s Attorney’s Office, statements from State’s Attorney Robert Berlin, court records detailing Anthony Jimenez’s guilty plea and sentencing, and information provided by the Villa Park Police Department about the investigation into Jessica Reyes’ death.