Babatope Oweseni, 36, of East Orange, received the sentence after losing a bid to withdraw his guilty plea
NEWARK -- More than a month after losing a bid to withdraw his guilty plea to strangling his pregnant wife to death, an East Orange man was sentenced on Friday to 16 years in state prison.
But throughout the hearing, Babatope Owoseni claimed his former attorney coerced him into pleading guilty and he maintained his innocence.
"I didn't kill my wife," Owoseni told Superior Court Judge Ronald Wigler, according to an audio recording of the hearing. "You're sending an innocent man to jail."
The judge, however, rejected those claims and noted how Owoseni had admitted when he pleaded guilty to killing his wife during "a dispute over the fact that she was pregnant and that the child was not yours." Owoseni also had said he was not being forced to plead guilty, according to the judge.
"I heard it out of your own mouth under oath," Wigler told Owoseni. "I have trouble believing that you're an innocent man like you profess today."
Owoseni, 36, pleaded guilty on March 19, 2015 to an aggravated manslaughter charge in connection with the Dec. 27, 2013 killing of 26-year-old Fatoumata Owoseni, who was nine months pregnant at the time. The unborn child died as a result of the attack, authorities said.
Under a plea agreement, prosecutors recommended the 16-year prison sentence for Owoseni. He must serve nearly 14 years before becoming eligible for parole and he will receive credit for more than two years of time served.
Given the admissions Owoseni made when he pleaded guilty, Wigler on Feb. 5 denied his motion to withdraw the guilty plea. The judge said at the time he remains satisfied that Owoseni understood the terms of the plea agreement and that his guilty plea was "knowing and voluntary."
In his motion, Owoseni claimed his former attorney did not provide him with certain materials before he pleaded guilty, according to his current attorney, John Haggerty.
Those materials were the autopsy report, crime scene photos, autopsy photos and a transcript of the grand jury proceedings leading to his indictment, Haggerty said.
But Essex County Assistant Prosecutor Ralph Amirata, who handled the case, noted that although Owoseni claims he was not provided with the autopsy report, he acknowledged during the plea hearing that he reviewed the report.
Bill Wichert may be reached at bwichert@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @BillWichertNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.