Whittier man convicted of killing estranged wife in front of son days before Christmas
NORWALK, Calif. - An ex-con who gunned down his estranged wife in front of their 8-year-old son inside a Kohl's store in Whittier three days before Christmas 2020 was convicted Monday of first-degree murder.
Enrique Acosta, now 43, of Whittier, killed 46-year-old Yvonne Annette Acosta after the two argued inside the store in the presence of their son, prosecutors said.
Officers were called about 5:30 p.m. Dec. 22, 2022, to Whittwood Town Center on Whittier Boulevard near Santa Gertrudes Avenue after getting reports that shots were fired inside Kohl's, according to the Whittier Police Department.
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Yvonne Acosta was found on the floor inside the store and died at the scene.
Her estranged husband collided with the victim's parked car as he fled in his vehicle, according to the District Attorney's Office.
Acosta was taken into custody the next day in the Barstow area.
Whittier police Officer Hugo Figueroa told City News Service at the time that Acosta and the victim had been separated for about a year.
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Authorities said Acosta violated a protective stay-away court order related to a 2019 domestic violence conviction.
According to prosecutors, he was convicted of voluntary manslaughter in 2000, and online court records indicate that he was sentenced to 12 years in prison as a result of a guilty plea in that case, which was filed in 1998.