A Kane County judge has sentenced Abel Quinones‑Herstad to 38 years in prison after he admitted to killing his mother, 55‑year‑old Edith Gonzalez‑Alarcon, in an Aurora apartment in July 2022. The guilty plea closes a chilling case that began when Aurora officers found Gonzalez‑Alarcon's body during a welfare check the morning after the attack.
What Prosecutors Say
Prosecutors say Quinones‑Herstad stabbed Gonzalez‑Alarcon 26 times on July 14, 2022, inside an apartment on the 0‑99 block of Jackson Place, according to ABC7 Chicago. The Kane County State's Attorney's Office said Quinones‑Herstad pleaded guilty to first‑degree murder and agreed to the 38‑year sentence.
After the attack, Quinones‑Herstad went to his brother’s home in West Allis, Wisconsin, and told family members "he had done something bad to their mother and could not go back," which led to his arrest by West Allis police, as reported by CBS News Chicago. Aurora officers were called the next morning for a welfare check and found Gonzalez‑Alarcon’s body hidden in a closet. Investigators recovered a knife from beneath a living‑room rug, officials said.
Sentence And Time Served
Judge Barsanti accepted the guilty plea and ordered that Quinones‑Herstad serve the full 38‑year term. Prosecutors said he was credited with 1,243 days already served in the Kane County jail, according to Patch. Under state procedures, he will be transferred to the Illinois Department of Corrections to serve the remainder of his sentence.
Officials' Statement
First Assistant State's Attorney Christine Bayer called the killing "a brutal and heinous crime that forever altered the lives of everyone involved" and thanked Aurora and West Allis investigators and victim advocates, according to FOX32 Chicago. Prosecutors said the lengthy prison term brings legal accountability even as the family continues to grieve.
The plea brings a measure of legal closure to a case that rattled Aurora when the details first emerged. Local coverage and prosecutors say the outcome provides accountability while the family continues to process its loss, per CBS News Chicago.
