Miami-Dade man who pleaded guilty to stabbing his wife to death is off to prison

Miami-Dade County admin October 21, 2026 0 Comments

Miami-Dade man who pleaded guilty to stabbing his wife to death is off to prison

A man who confessed to stabbing his wife to death in front of their 7-year-old daughter inside a car in 2019 — and who often went on lengthy tirades in the courtroom — will soon be off to prison.

Standing in an orange jail jumpsuit, Onelio Castro-Arroyo, 59, pleaded guilty on Monday to the second-degree murder of Yanelys Gonzalez Santander, 45. Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Ellen Sue Venzer sentenced Castro-Arroyo to 20 years in prison.

That sentence will run concurrently to a 60-year sentence the judge meted out in January because Castro-Arroyo violated the terms of his probation when he was arrested on the murder charge. Castro-Arroyo was on probation after serving five years in prison for a 2014 gas-station explosion caused by his siphoning fuel.

Gonzalez Santander was killed on May 21, 2019, while in the driver’s seat of her car just outside Miami Lakes, according to court records. The couple’s daughter told investigators that “daddy killed” her mother.

Detectives also located a bloody knife, which had Gonzalez Santander’s DNA on it, in a dumpster outside Castro-Arroyo’s residence, court records say. Castro-Arroyo turned himself in to police shortly after and admitted to stabbing his wife.

READ MORE: Man accused of killing wife in front of daughter rejects deal, shouts at judge

Castro-Arroyo was calm throughout the proceeding and didn’t address the court. In previous hearings, Castro-Arroyo lashed out at the judge, shouting in Spanish that he wanted to represent himself. He demanded that the judge allow him to fire his attorneys because they were “accusing me,” and slammed his cuffed hands on the wood partition in the jury box.

‘You ruined my whole life’

An older daughter Gonzalez Santander had from a previous relationship spoke during the hearing, saying she has spent the last seven years reflecting on what she wanted to say when she confronted her mother’s killer.

“That is the only title you’re going to take your grave,” the daughter said. “I want you to look at me because this is the last time you’re going to hear about me or my sister.”

The woman also read out a message from her younger sister, Castro-Arroyo’s now teenaged daughter, who witnessed the murder. In the statement, Castro-Arroyo’s daughter said he was a “disgusting monster who does cruel things just for the pleasure of it.”

“You ruined my whole life with just a knife,” the teen said in the statement. “You’re nothing else but a sick and wild animal. You should be in a cage…. The only thing I hope for is to never see you again.”

After sentencing Castro-Arroyo, Judge Venzer said, “May God have mercy on your soul.”