October 10, 2008
by Ann Marie Fallon
On October 4, after deliberating for eight and a half hours, a sequestered Westchester County jury found Carlos Perez-Olivo, 60, guilty in the November 2006 murder of his wife Peggy Hall Perez-Olivo, 55, a former teaching assistant at Douglas Grafflin Elementary School.
The jury rejected Perez-Olivo claim that he and his wife were ambushed on Nov. 18, 2006, by a hit man on their way home from a night in Manhattan. It was his contention that they were run off Route 100 in Millwood by an unknown assailant who entered the back seat of the vehicle and fatally shot his wife in the head and him in the abdomen. As he drove his wife to Northern Westchester Hospital, Perez Olivo called 911; those calls were admitted into evidence at his trial. Perez-Olivo claimed that the assailant had been hired by a disgruntled client of his former law practice. Perez- Olivo was disbarred in 2006 for stealing money from clients.
The district attorney and police maintained that Perez-Olivo invented his story and shot his wife to collect $882,000 in life insurance proceeds. The insurance claim has been paid to the couple’s three grown children.
During the 11-day trial assistant district attorney Christine O’Connor introduced into evidence the murder weapon, a small, short barrel Walther PPK gun that was fished out of Echo Lake in Millwood. At trial, a former landlord of Perez-Olivo testified that several months prior to the murder Perez-Olivo was in possession of this type of German pistol. He recalled that the two of them had had a long discussion about the unique gun, and the witness had expressed an interest in purchasing it from Perez-Olivo. In the opinion of a veteran firearms expert, called as a witness for the prosecution, the bullet that killed Peggy Hall Perez-Olivo could only have come from the gun retrieved from Echo Lake.
The prosecution also introduced a plastic bag, which was found in the defendant’s trench coat with gun powder residue on it.
At the news conference following the conviction, District Attorney Janet DiFlore commended New Castle Police Lt. Marc Simmons and detectives Gary Beaumont, Dan Corrado and Noel Vargas for their outstanding investigative work on this case.
Lead defense counsel Christopher McClure stated that he was disappointed by the verdict and that he plans to file an appeal. McClure contended that the case was entirely circumstantial.
Perez-Olivo faces 25 years to life in prison when he is sentenced in White Plains on December 2 by Westchester County Judge Barbara Zambelli.
Copyright 2008 NewCastleNOW.org