In Wapakoneta, Ohio, a mother has been sentenced to 40 years in prison for fatally poisoning her estranged ex-husband. Amanda Hovonec, 37, pleaded guilty to the murder of Timothy Hovanec after injecting him with a fatal dose of poison. The incident took place after Timothy dropped off their children at her home.
The tragic events were captured on the victim’s dashcam footage, which showed Amanda wrestling Timothy to the ground before injecting him with M99, an anesthetic used on zoo animals and is up to 3,000 times stronger than morphine. Timothy, a 36-year-old father-of-three and a US State Department researcher, was returning their children after a weekend visit when the attack occurred on April 24.
Amanda, along with her mother Anita Green, ambushed Timothy as he was unloading the children’s car seats. She held him by the neck until he lost consciousness after injecting him with the poison. She then proceeded to plunder his phone and smartwatch before switching off the vehicle’s engine and dashcam. Amanda’s violent and calculated actions have shocked the community and the victim’s family.
Investigators later discovered that Amanda’s lover, Anthony Theodorou, had supplied the poison and helped bury Timothy’s body. Anita Green, Amanda’s mother, pleaded guilty to being an accessory to the crimes and was sentenced to 10 years in prison. She will also have two years of supervised release and must pay a hefty sum in restitution. Meanwhile, Theodorou is awaiting sentencing for his part in the heinous crime.
US Attorney Rebecca Lutzko expressed the gravity of the situation, stating that Amanda’s actions were cold-blooded and unforgivable. The hope is that the victim’s family can find closure as they come to terms with this horrific tragedy. The community is left in shock by the betrayal and violence that unfolded in a quiet neighbourhood.