Elvia Cabrera sentenced to 102 years for killing of Gabriela Nicole Pratts Rosario
By THE STAR STAFF
Aibonito Judge Luis Barreto Altieri sentenced Elvia Cabrera Rivera to 102 years in prison on Thursday for the 2025 killing of 16‑year‑old Gabriela Nicole Pratts Rosario, imposing consecutive terms for first‑degree murder and a weapons violation.
The sentence came several weeks after a jury of seven women and five men unanimously found Cabrera Rivera guilty after some three hours of deliberation. Before hearing her punishment, Cabrera Rivera addressed the court, insisting she was innocent and claiming witnesses had not told the full truth.
“I deeply regret Gabriela’s death,” she said. “I declare myself innocent of everything I’m accused of, because all the witnesses have not told the whole truth. All this time I have felt calm. I was fighting for my innocence and I remain firm that I am innocent.”
Her defense team sought to delay sentencing earlier this week, asking the Puerto Rico Supreme Court to intervene after a verdict form was damaged during jury deliberations. The high court rejected the request. Attorneys also urged the judge to consider mitigating factors under Article 65 of the Penal Code, including Cabrera Rivera’s lack of a prior criminal record and alleged good conduct, arguing the request did not constitute acceptance of the verdict.
During the trial, multiple witnesses testified that Cabrera Rivera retrieved an object from her purse and handed it to her daughter, Anthonieska Avilés Cabrera, who also faces charges in the case. Some witnesses said they saw Cabrera Rivera strike Pratts Rosario while the teen lay on the ground, though none reported seeing the moment the fatal stab wounds were inflicted.
Pratts Rosario suffered 11 stab wounds, including one to the apex of the heart, and was pronounced dead at 12:35 a.m. on Aug. 11, 2025. The killing at the Roberto Colón bypass in Aibonito took place during the wind-down of a municipal end-of-summer celebration in the southern-central town.
Another witness, Gabriela “Gaba” Figueroa Arroyo — a friend of Avilés Cabrera who is not charged — testified that Avilés Cabrera arrived with cuts and blood on her body and told her, “Gaga, Gaba, I stabbed her.”
A cousin of the victim also testified that Cabrera Rivera told her, “You didn’t see anything,” after allegedly picking up her purse and concealing a thin object.
Cabrera Rivera was convicted in cases BVI2025G0009 and BLA2025G0103. The trial for her daughter, Avilés Cabrera, is scheduled to begin next Tuesday.
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