Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Heiress gets 60 days' jail for killing lover

Andrew Marshall
Wednesday 13 May 1998 23:02 BST
Comments

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

SUSAN Cummings, the Virginia heiress, was found guilty of killing her boyfriend yesterday. But she escaped the charge of first-degree murder, and was sentenced to only 60 days in jail and a fine of $2,500 for voluntary manslaughter.

Cummings, 35, is the daughter of the world's most famous arms dealer, the billionaire Sam Cummings, who died two weeks ago.

She admitted shooting Roberto Villegas, her lover, in the kitchen over breakfast last September. But she claimed that Mr Villegas, a polo-player, was a violent and dangerous man who had repeatedly threatened her, and said she was in fear of her life. She said she shot him in self-defence.

The prosecution claimed that she had murdered him in cold blood after the affair went sour. "You just flat blew him away," Kevin Casey, the prosecutor, said in his closing statement.

She had cuts on her arm which she said were caused by Mr Villegas, but experts said that they appeared to have been self-inflicted. Blood on Mr Villegas' jeans showed that he was sitting down when four 9mm bullets from a Walther pistol hit him. He still had a piece of croissant in his mouth.

Mr Casey told jurors to ignore evidence about Mr Villegas' violent behaviour. "None of that matters," he said. "It could have been Jack the Ripper ... but that did not give her the right to do what she did."

"I am very happy," Cummings told a news conference after the trial. She could have faced up to 10 years in jail for the charge of voluntary manslaughter, and served life if found guilty of first-degree murder.

Cummings is unlikely to find it hard to pay the fine. She lives on a luxurious $2bn estate in Virginia's horse country.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in