Burlington County Prosecutor Scott Coffina announced that a Pemberton Township man has pled guilty to fatally attacking his wife last summer with a hammer and knife at their home in the Browns Mills section of the township.
Under an agreement with the Prosecutor’s Office, Kenneth D. Arsenault, 60, of the first block of Cochita Trail, will be sentenced to 27 years in state prison in exchange for pleading guilty to Aggravated Manslaughter (First Degree). He must serve 85 percent of the term before becoming eligible for parole.
The Hon. Gerard H. Breland, J.S.C. scheduled sentencing for July 5.
Officers from the Pemberton Township Police Department were called to the Arsenaults’ home on April 7, 2018, at approximately 10 p.m. for a report of a woman screaming for help. Upon arrival, officers found Arsenault on top of his wife on the ground outside of their residence.
Kenneth Arsenault was immediately taken into custody, and Lorraine Arsenault, 61, was transported to the Lourdes Emergency Department at Deborah in Browns Mills, where she was pronounced dead approximately one hour after being attacked.
Arsenault is being prosecuted by Assistant Prosecutor Bob Van Gilst, supervisor of the Major Crimes Unit – Violent Crimes Section.
The investigation was conducted by the Pemberton Township Police Department and the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office. The lead investigators were Pemberton Township Detective Jonathan Glass and BCPO Detective Tom LaRosa.