Man pleads guilty in 1984 Hillsborough County murder, sentenced to 50 years in prison
Donald Santini in court on November 16.
HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. - A man who was arrested earlier this year in connection to a 1984 Hillsborough County murder entered a plea deal and was sentenced to 50 years in prison on Thursday.
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Donald Santini, 65, was arrested in late June and charged with the killing of a 33-year-old woman in 1984 after evading law enforcement for nearly 40 years. In addition to his 50-year sentence in Florida State Prison, Santini also received 15 years of probation as part of the plea deal.
Donald Santini (left) was sentenced to 50 years in state prison for the murder of Cynthia Wood (right)
In 1984, detectives discovered the body of Cynthia Wood, then a 33-year-old woman going through a divorce with her husband, strangled and left in a canal.
READ: Florida fugitive cries as a judge decides where he will await murder trial after 40 years on the run
According to the 13th Judicial Circuit, Santini eluded capture by living under the name Wellman Simmonds in Texas and California. He was featured on the ‘America's Most Wanted' television show in 1990, 2005, and 2013.
Law enforcement stand at the scene where Wood's body was discovered in 1984.
He was eventually discovered by federal authorities this year when he applied for a passport, and his fingerprints matched those of the missing murder suspect. He was arrested in California.
"No family should have to spend decades waiting for justice to be served in the cruel murder of their loved one. This defendant not only stole an innocent life, but he also left a family without their mother, and without answers," State Attorney Suzy Lopez said. "Our thoughts are with the victim’s family and friends as they close a painful chapter and move toward healing."
As Santini was set to go to trial in two weeks he changed his mind and decided to take a plea deal on Thursday. He pled guilty to second-degree murder in exchange for his sentence.
Prosecutor Scott Harmon says at the time, Wood was going through a contentious divorce. They say Santini was part of a plot to smear her reputation to use it in a child custody battle,
"He advised he was taking her on a date to make sure that she was intoxicated and to drop her off at a police station," Harmon explained. "He had been paid money by her ex-husband’s family."
Prosecutors said Santini’s fingerprints were found at the crime scene.