No witch doctor can help him now.
A Senegalese man will serve at least 25 years -- and as much as the rest of his life -- after halting his trial and pleading guilty this morning to the heinous rape-murder of his ex-girlfriend, a beautiful Borough of Manhattan Community College student from Italy.
"As a man of Muslim faith, he wanted to finally take responsibility for his actions," defense lawyer Seema Iyer said after court. "He's also relieved that the Morelli family is now spared the hardship of a criminal trial."
Bakary Camara, 42, had tried but failed last week to convince a Manhattan judge to let him call what prosecutors derided as a "witch doctor" to convince a jury that he was compelled to slash and violate Rita Morelli, 36, by a West African "curse" of unknown origin.
Steven Hirsch
Bakary Camara
Camara's murder and rape trial had already begun late last week with the selection of more than half the required jurors. Opening statements had been slated for this afternoon.
"Yes," Camara hissed from the defense table when asked by Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan whether he admitted he intentionally caused Morelli's death while committing the felonies of rape and robbery against her. Camara pleaded guilty to the entire indictment against him -- eight counts of murder, rape and robbery.
"I'm happy," said the victim's cousin, journalist Giorgio Morelli, of Dutchess County, who had come to court expecting to watch the trial, not a plea which took even prosecutors by surprise.
"He has been in jail for one year, and he has another 24 years to go," the cousin said. "I hope to be here 24 years from now, or my children, and be sure he does not get out."
Morelli was found last November with her throat slashed in her bed in the apartment she shared with her chef fiancé on E. 120th Street.
She had moved to the United States from her home town of Pescara four years prior to her death, teaching Italian, waitressing and sales clerking to support her dream of a liberal arts degree and American citizenship, her cousin said. She was a month away from getting her degree, and had planned to marry the following summer, he said.
"Her dream was to be in Manhattan," the cousin said. "She love the museums. She love the fashion, the art. She was really pretty boring," he said, with a sad smile. "Just study, study, study, and museums."
Of Camara, the cousin said, "She was very naive. And unlucky to meet the wrong guy."
Morelli was the first Italian citizen killed in New York City in 25 years, and the case had been closely followed by the Italian press.
She had met Camara more than two years ago when they worked for six months at the same West Broadway clothing store. He worked in security, she worked in sales, and the two spoke French together.
Camara, born in the US but raised in Senegal, was arrested nearly a week after the murder, after directing a 911 operator to the address. He stabbed himself in the stomach twice, while crying "I killed Rita," as cops entered the bedroom of his Bronx address to question him.
Camara directed cops to a note in his jacket, in which he detailed a failed relationship with Morelli and blamed the murder on his having suffered a "curs," as he spelled it.
Had Camara not taken his plea and rolled the dice with a jury, he'd have risked an even stiffer sentence: life without parole for first degree murder and rape. His sentence has been set for Oct. 30.
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