A 60-year-old Long Beach man was sentenced today for fatally stabbing his ex-girlfriend last year.
Ngounsay Keo was sentenced to 19 years to life in state prison after he was found guilty last month of one count each of second-degree murder and making criminal threats with jurors also finding true a knife allegation, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
Keo killed Karina Duch, 40, on April 13, 2016 in the home they once shared before eventually turning the knife on himself. Authorities said Duch had moved out of the couple’s home with their children and obtained a temporary restraining order against Keo just over a week prior to her death.
The two were in a dating relationship for 23 years and had two children together.
The prosecutor Deputy District Attorney Kelly Kelley of the Victim Impact Program said it was unclear why Duch returned to the home. Forensic evidence indicated that she was stabbed in the living room then moved to the bedroom after she died. Keo left an envelope with more than $2,500 in cash for their two sons along with a suicide note.
Their 7-year-old son discovered Keo when he walked into the home before he ran back to a neighbor’s house where he had been playing. When officers responded, Keo refused commands to drop a knife and officers used “less lethal options” to take him into custody, police said.
He was then taken to a local hospital where he underwent emergency surgery and was booked the next day. Keo has remained in police custody since then and will turn 61 in jail tomorrow.
City News Service contributed to this report.