Simon Bahta flared up in anger Thursday as a jury found him guilty of killing his 3-year-old daughter and her mother last April.
Go to hell, Ive done what I want to do, Bahta snapped at the Judge Lisa Kemler.
Bahta faces a minimum of 45 years imprisonment but the prosecution requested two life sentences plus 20 years for murdering Seble Tessema, 27, and the former couples daughter, Eden, on April 11, 2010.
The defendant pled not guilty by reason of insanity earlier in the week but the testimony of doctors who treated Bahta over the last 10 years was not enough to convince the jury he was legally insane.
All of this discussion of mental instability doesnt get to the root of a much deeper problem, said deputy prosecutor Krista Boucher. He is frighteningly selfish.
Bahta, also known as Simon Asfeha, wanted custody of Eden and to be with Tessemma as a complete family, according to testimony. But a record of domestic violence and other misdemeanors caught the attention of Child Protective Services the enemy,” in his words which cut short his visits with Eden.
With the help of Bahtas testimony, the commonwealth portrayed a man unwilling to let his family live, unless it was with him. Prosecutors maintained the brutal crime was premeditated from the onset.
Look at how he executed his plan. He slit their throats like animals, Boucher told the 14-person jury. Instead of a man with a debilitating illness we have a man who made a selfish, jealous decision to take [Tessemas and Edens] lives.