Vanessa Milligan (center); screenshot via CBS6 Albany.
Twenty-year-old Gabriel Vega was sentenced to 50 years in prison last month for the deaths of Vanessa Milligan, 19, and his unborn child, whom Milligan was carrying. On June 1, he was convicted of first-degree manslaughter, second-degree arson, third-degree arson, and first-degree abortion.
On April 3, 2014, Vega strangled Milligan who was due to give birth just one week later. He then poured gasoline on her and set her apartment on fire to cover up the murders, and in the process, burnt down two buildings. Milligan had lost her grandmother to cancer that same day.
“The defendant deserves no mercy from this court and will get none,” Rensselaer County Judge Andrew Ceresia said during the sentencing according to the Times Union.
Milligan’s family was happy with the sentencing.
“It’s just such a relief,” Nate Milligan, Vanessa Milligan’s father, said outside of the courthouse. “Today is a celebration for my family. Today was his funeral, and I was glad to be there.”
Nate Milligan lost his mother, daughter, and granddaughter (whom Vanessa Milligan had named Alina) all on the same day.
Vega will serve the maximum 25-year sentence for manslaughter plus the maximum 25-year sentence for arson. The judge ruled that they were separate crimes and therefore the sentences could occur consecutively. The 2 1/3 to 7-year sentence on the abortion charge will be served within the manslaughter sentencing because both deaths were a result of the same act.
