Current:Home > FinanceConnecticut woman found dead hours before she was to be sentenced for killing her husband-DB Wealth Institute B2 Expert Reviews
Connecticut woman found dead hours before she was to be sentenced for killing her husband
View Date:2024-12-23 15:42:49
A 76-year-old Connecticut woman was found dead at her home Wednesday, hours before she was to be sentenced for killing her husband and hiding his body for months while continuing to collect his paychecks.
State police said they were investigating the “untimely death” of Linda Kosuda-Bigazzi after being called to her Burlington home for a welfare check shortly after 10:30 a.m. The cause of her death was under investigation, and police and her lawyer did not disclose any further details.
Kosuda-Bigazzi had been scheduled under a plea deal to be sentenced at 2 p.m. Wednesday in Hartford Superior Court to 13 years in prison for the 2017 death of her husband, Dr. Pierluigi Bigazzi, 84.
Her lawyer, Patrick Tomasiewicz, said her death was unexpected.
“We were honored to be her legal counsel and did our very best to defend her in a complex case for the past six years,” he said in a statement. “She was a very independent woman who was always in control of her own destiny.”
Kosuda-Bigazzi pleaded guilty to manslaughter and larceny in March after having been charged with murder in the death of Bigazzi, a professor of laboratory science and pathology at UConn Health. In writings found at her house, Kosuda-Bigazzi said she killed her husband with a hammer in self-defense, state police said. She was free after having posted more than $1.5 million for bail.
Police said Kosuda-Bigazzi wrote that she and her husband got into a fight after she told him repairs were needed to their home’s backyard deck. She wrote that he came at her with a hammer and she managed to wrestle it away from him during a lengthy struggle, authorities said.
“I hit him just swinging the hammer in any direction + then he was quiet — for a few seconds + then he stopped breathing,” she wrote, according to investigators. “I just wanted to slow him down. I sat on the floor by the kitchen cabinets across from the stove — next to him for a long time.”
State troopers found her husband’s body in their basement in February 2018 during a wellness check requested by UConn Health staff. It was wrapped in plastic and showed an advanced stage of decomposition, authorities said. The medical examiner said he had died from blunt trauma to his head.
Investigators have said they believe Pierluigi Bigazzi died sometime in July 2017 and that his UConn Health paychecks continued to be deposited into the couple’s joint checking account until his body was found.
An internal investigation by UConn resulted in the disciplining of a school medical official who was supposed to monitor Pierluigi Bigazzi’s work but had no contact with him in the months before his body was found.
veryGood! (182)
Related
- 2025 NFL mock draft: QBs Shedeur Sanders, Cam Ward crack top five
- QVC’s Gift-a-Thon Sale Has the Season’s Lowest Prices on Peter Thomas Roth, Dyson, Tarte, Bose & More
- Investment banks to put $10 billion into projects aimed at interconnecting South America
- How Ukraine's tech experts joined forces with the government despite differences
- Horoscopes Today, November 9, 2024
- Putin will seek another presidential term in Russia, extending his rule of over two decades
- The labor market stays robust, with employers adding 199,000 jobs last month
- Las Cruces police officer indicted for voluntary manslaughter in fatal 2022 shooting of a Black man
- Mike Tyson concedes the role of villain to young foe in 58-year-old’s fight with Jake Paul
- US Sen. Kevin Cramer’s son charged with manslaughter in crash that killed North Dakota deputy
Ranking
- Patricia Heaton criticizes media, 'extremists' she says 'fear-mongered' in 2024 election
- McDonald's is opening a new chain called CosMc's. Here are the locations and menu.
- Kentucky governor says state-run disaster relief funds can serve as model for getting aid to victims
- LeBron James scores 30 points, Lakers rout Pelicans 133-89 to reach tournament final
- What do nails have to say about your health? Experts answer your FAQs.
- Investment banks to put $10 billion into projects aimed at interconnecting South America
- Drought vs deluge: Florida’s unusual rainfall totals either too little or too much on each coast
- The UNLV shooting victims have been identified. Here's what we know.
Recommendation
-
OneTaste Founder Nicole Daedone Speaks Out on Sex Cult Allegations Against Orgasmic Meditation Company
-
Dump Bill Belichick? Once unthinkable move for Patriots might be sensible – yet still a stunner
-
Tom Sandoval Says He Fought So Hard for Raquel Leviss After Affair Before Heartbreaking Breakup
-
‘New Year’s Rockin’ Eve’ will feature Janelle Monáe, Green Day, Ludacris, Reneé Rapp and more in LA
-
Pedro Pascal's Sister Lux Pascal Debuts Daring Slit on Red Carpet at Gladiator II Premiere
-
Kerry Washington puts Hollywood on notice in speech: 'This is not a level playing field'
-
White House proposes to 'march in' on patents for costly drugs
-
Recording Academy, ex CEO Mike Greene sued for sexual assault of former employee Terri McIntyre