VAN BUREN, Ark. — The murder trial for a Van Buren man accused of killing his wife began Tuesday, Jan. 23, at 8:30 a.m.
Eathan Cypert, 30, was found guilty on Jan. 25, according to Crawford County Prosecuting Attorney Kevin Holmes.
Holmes says that Cypert will get life in prison plus an additional 15 years on a firearm enhancement.
Holmes says the jury deliberated for about an hour on the guilty verdict, then 20-25 minutes on the sentence. He was facing one count of first-degree murder.
On July 3, 2022, deputies with the Crawford County Sheriff's Office responded to a domestic disturbance call near Natural Dam between 2 a.m. and 3 a.m.
Once on the scene, deputies found 41-year-old Kristina Cypert had been shot. She was pronounced dead on the scene.
According to the Crawford County Sheriff's Department, Eathan's aunt called the deputies before the shooting and reported that he and his wife were fighting.
Eathan's aunt called back moments later to inform the deputies that they were no longer fighting.
According to Crawford County Sheriff Jimmy Damante, Van Buren Police arrested Eathan later that morning at the nearby I-40 rest area for first-degree murder.
He was originally being held at the Crawford County Jail but was transferred to the Franklin County Jail because a family member of Kristina's works at the Crawford County Jail, according to the sheriff's office.
On the first day of Eathan's trial, four witnesses testified before Judge Mike Medlock. All of them were Kristina's family members.
Kristina's two nieces, nephew, and her uncle testified on Jan. 23. The testimonies mainly reflected on the days leading up to the day Kristina was killed. Before she was killed, her two nieces said in their testimonies that they went on vacation with her to Pensacola and noticed bruising on her lower body and her ribs.
Report from July 2022:
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