Overview
- New York State Supreme Court Justice Curtis Farber imposed the sentence on March 4, 2026, following Mrkulic’s December 17, 2025 conviction.
- Prosecutors said Mrkulic inflicted more than 120 stab and slash wounds on 30-year-old Christopher Rodriguez after the pair returned to Rodriguez’s East Harlem apartment on May 16, 2020.
- Evidence showed Mrkulic set fires in the kitchen and bedroom, tried to disable the building’s alarm, and dragged the gravely injured victim into the hallway where he died.
- The attack on first responders included punching and biting Officer Rutger Rivera, seizing his taser and shocking his temple, injuring Officer Briggitte Martinez and attempting to grab her gun, and biting Officer Jorge Gavilano.
- The blaze forced the evacuation of hundreds of residents from the 12-story Acacia Gardens building, and officials noted that Rodriguez had intermittently housed Mrkulic during the pandemic after he became homeless.