Sarah Boone gets life for zipping boyfriend in suitcase and suffocating him to death

ORLANDO, Fla. (TCN) -- A judge has sentenced Sarah Boone to life in prison for leaving her boyfriend in a closed suitcase overnight, causing him to suffocate to death.

Boone received the sentence Monday, Dec. 2, just over a month after a jury convicted her of the second-degree murder of her boyfriend, Jorge Torres Jr. Boone’s trial lasted 10 days and ended with her guilty verdict on Oct. 25.

The Ninth Judicial Circuit State’s Attorney said Boone and Torres were playing hide-and-seek in their townhome on Feb. 20, 2020, when Torres "voluntarily climbed inside a suitcase as part of the game." Boone recorded videos of Torres in the suitcase, including ones where he asked for help and to be let out. Boone would respond, "That’s what you get," and "That’s what it feels like when you cheat on me."

Boone went to sleep and Torres was dead when she woke up.

During her trial, Boone testified and spoke about how Torres abused her and she feared for her life.

Several members of Torres' family gave victim impact statements at the sentencing hearing. His mother, Blanca Torres, said, "She not only killed my son. She killed a father, an uncle, a brother." She continued, "Sometimes when I look out the window, I wait for him to come and say, 'Mom, I love you.'"

Torres' sister, Victoria Torres, said she believes her brother "deserves justice," adding, "Sarah caused a lifetime of pain, a lifetime of horrible images, a lifetime of hearing my brother Jorge plead for his life."

She continued, "This is a moment for all of you. For me and my family, it’s forever."

Boone also gave a lengthy statement and spoke about how she forgave Torres and his family but did so in a way where she listed times Torres purportedly abused her. For instance, she said she forgave Torres for "every time he slapped me, kicked, punched, spit on, raped, stabbed, choked, laughed at, pushed, pulled, dragged, whipped, tripped, stole from, lied, terrorized, threatened, humiliated, forced, degraded, made me cry, every time he tried to end me, defeat, or destroy."

She continued, "For breaking or removing the locks from all of the doors and sometimes the knobs altogether so I had nowhere to feel safe, including the sacred space of my son’s room, where he beat me bloody on his bed."

Boone said she forgave his family "for knowing who Jorge was, what he was capable of and has done in the past, his history of violence and where he learned it, then to keep turning a blind eye when I would ask for help."

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