Woman confronts husband over sister's murder

ALBION, N.Y. (WIVB) - A grief stricken woman confronted her husband on Thursday in Orleans County over the rape and murder of her 15-year-old sister.

It is raw emotion. Kimberly Cardenas saw her husband for the first time since he was arrested for raping and murdering her sister, 15-year-old Katherine Sanchez.

21-year-old Carlos Cardenas told police that the killing was an accident. He told authorities he had sex with Sanchez in the bathroom of his home. Cardenas said his wife was gone, but Sanchez's 7-year-old sister, Adriana, was in the home.

In a graphic and gruesome 11-page statement, Cardenas reveals Sanchez's struggle the night she was killed. He wrote, "Katy got down and reached for the door handle and yelled out, "Adriana!"" He continued by writing, "Katy then began pulling my hair, right sides of my head. I told her let me go and I'll let you go."

>> After not giving out any information and claims from the family of neglecting the case, police in Albion spoke out

>> Sanchez was a popular student in Albion, and students came to school during a mid-winter break to talk to grief counselors

>> The family talks about discovering that Sanchez had been murdered and that her brother-in-law was the suspected killer

He said he held her down and doesn't remember how long until he let her go. Cardenas wrote, "When I took my arm off her neck, she fell to the ground and was unconscious."

He told police he hid her body in his basement for a few days. Sanchez's body was found last week in a shallow grave at an Orleans County apple orchard. Kimberly Cardenas is still in shock that her sister is gone and her husband is charged with killing her.

"I don't know how he lived, slept through the night, I have no idea," said Kimberly.

She waited outside Albion Court to confront her husband.

Kimberly said, "I just wanna see him and I wanna jump on him. I wanna strangle him."

And she certainly would have tried if authorities hadn't stepped in.

The funeral for Katherine Sanchez was held on Tuesday. She was a sophomore at Albion high School, where she was a member of the track team. Carlos Cardenas pleaded not guilty. The prosecutor says the case will go before a grand jury in the next month.