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Crime & Safety

Man Charged Accused of Fatally Stabbing Wife in La Palma Dies After 3-Year Coma

Romeo Villajin died more than three years after allegedly stabbing his wife after he saw a photo of her at her "divorce party."

A 44-year-old man who had been in a coma since being charged with fatally stabbing his ex-wife in La Palma three years ago died recently without ever regaining consciousness, a prosecutor revealed today.

Romeo Villajin's arrest was caught live by news crews as he tried to hold police at bay following the May 1, 2009, stabbing death of 39-year-old Lorena Villajin, Deputy District Attorney Scott Simmons said.

The victim was having a "divorce party" to celebrate the dissolution of her marriage when someone sent her former spouse a photo of her with someone at the party, Simmons said.

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An enraged Romeo Villajin then went over to her home in the 700 block of Bon Villa Circle in La Palma about 12:45 p.m. and attacked her, Simmons said.

He was tracked down hours later at a shopping center in West Covina, but refused to get out of his car, Simmons said. A police dog eventually yanked him out, but not before Villajin had slashed his wrists.

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Villajin had been in a coma since then and died this month, Simmons said.

The slaying occurred less than two miles from the Cerritos border in neighboring La Palma.

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