Man who stabbed Waterbury woman to death in 2018 and attempted to kill her young son gets life in prison – Hartford Courant

A 54-year-old Waterbury man was sentenced to 105 years in prison on Wednesday for the stabbing death of a Waterbury mother and the attempted murder of her young son in their home in 2018, according to the State’s Attorney’s office.

On Aug. 28, 2018, the Waterbury Police Department responded to a report of a woman bleeding. Officers found 48-year-old Solita Billups dead inside her home on White Rose Avenue.

Police said Billups’ husband came home after working an overnight shift and called 911 after he found his wife dead.

According to court records, Christopher Iverson, who had a personal relationship with Billups, stabbed her 26 times when an argument about their relationship turned violent. Iverson also struck her then-11-year-old son, who was home during the attack, in the head several times while he was bound to a chair before setting Billups’ Waterbury home on fire, court records said.

The mother of four worked for the Waterbury Board of Education as an administrative assistant for over 13 years, according to her obituary.

A Superior Court jury found Iverson guilty on the charges of murder, attempted murder, first-degree arson and first-degree burglary on Nov. 23, 2022. He was sentenced by Judge Hunchu Kwak in Waterbury Superior Court on Wednesday.

“As State’s Attorney for the Waterbury Judicial District, I am extremely proud that this office was able to secure a conviction and justice for the family and friends of Solita Billups,” State’s Attorney Maureen T. Platt said in a release on Thursday.

“Through the efforts and hard work of Supervisory Assistant State’s Attorney Don Therkildsen, Deputy Assistant State’s Attorney Alex Arroyo, our inspectors and the Waterbury Police Department, the family and public can be assured that the person responsible for this horrific crime has been held accountable and no longer poses a threat to public safety.”