HONOLULU — In military court on Thursday, a soldier from Hawaii pleaded not guilty to first-degree premeditated murder in the beating and stabbing death of his wife in January.
Hernandez Perez, 23, works for the 500th Military Intelligence Brigade as a signals intelligence analyst.
The date of his trial has been scheduled for Nov. 8.
Hernandez Perez, according to military prosecutors, took out a $100,000 life insurance policy on his wife, Selena Roth, on Dec. 15. On Jan. 10, Hernandez Perez went to Roth’s house and Googled how many swings it takes to murder someone with a bat, then battered and stabbed her to death.
Hernandez Perez allegedly hit her on the back of her head with a several-foot-long piece of wood and stabbed her four times in the back with a kitchen knife, according to prosecutors.