A woman extradited from Italy for the 2002 fatal bludgeoning of her husband in Michigan was convicted of second-degree murder in a case that prosecutors likened to a "made-for-TV movie."
A jury in Eaton County needed only two hours Monday to decide the outcome of the trial against Beverly McCallum, the Lansing State Journal reported.
Roberto Caraballo, 37, was suffocated and beaten in the basement of his home in Charlotte, about 105 miles northwest of Detroit.
Burned remains were found in a metal locker near a blueberry field in western Michigan's Ottawa County, but the remains were not identified as Caraballo until 2015, more than 10 years later.
McCallum, 63, was arrested in Italy in 2020 and held there for more than two years before being returned to Michigan. McCallum showed no visible reaction as the verdict was read, according to Court TV video.
Prosecutor Doug Lloyd said McCallum wanted to get rid of Caraballo in 2002 after he was released from federal prison.
"Robert being around was cramping her lifestyle," Lloyd argued.
Defense attorney Timothy Havis told jurors that McCallum didn't have a role in the killing but was lured into taking a ride to get rid of the remains.
Family Implicated in Murder Case
During the trial, Christopher McMillan, a witness who had pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and collaborated with the authorities, implicated a mother and daughter duo in the crime. According to McMillan, the victim, Caraballo, was attacked by the mother, McCallum, and her daughter, Dineane Ducharme.
Ducharme, aged 43, has been sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty of first-degree murder in 2021. Meanwhile, McMillan, aged 45, is currently serving a minimum of 15 years in prison for his involvement in the crime.
