Joseph Porter Sentenced To 20 Years For Girlfriend's Strangulation Death

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Twenty-six-year-old Joseph Porter was sentenced to more than 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to murdering his girlfriend in January of last year.

Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman announced the sentencing Tuesday, calling the strangulation murder of 27-year-old Cristina Prodan "heinous."

"We were not going to let him get away with just 15 years for his despicable actions and we were successful in getting him the additional time he deserves," Freeman said.

According to the original complaint, and his statements in court, Porter got into a physical altercation with Prodan in her Edina apartment Jan. 4, 2018. He proceeded to strangle her to death, and then hide her body in a suitcase.

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He put the suitcase in the backseat of his vehicle and drove to New Orleans, where he burned her body in a shipping container in a junk yard. He was also burned in the process.

Because Porter did not contact authorities and instead hid Prodan's body, he admitted his crime was particularly cruel, and agreed to a higher sentence than what would have been recommended under Minnesota's Sentencing Guidelines.

Prodan's mother wrote in her impact statement, "She is my only child. I cry all the time."