Ex-boyfriend gets life in prison for murder of Maui woman

Leila Fujimori, The Honolulu Star-Advertiser
·1 min read
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Jan. 26—A Maui Circuit Court judge sentenced today Bernard Brown to life in prison with the possibility of parole for the murder of his ex-girlfriend, 46-year-old Moreira Monsalve.

Brown was found guilty by a jury on Aug. 25, eight years after her disappearance in 2014. Her body was never found.

Monsalve disappeared shortly after their breakup and was last seen on Jan. 12, 2014 at Brown's Wailuku apartment.

Her daughter Alexis Felicilda told Brown at his sentencing, "You could make your life a little easier by telling us where she is."

Judge Peter Cahill alluded to the fact that Monsalve's body was never found, saying, "If I had it within my power, I would, but I just don't."

Deputy Prosecutor Jeff Hupp said Brown's flurry of electronic activity the evening of Jan. 12, 2014, and in the early morning hours of the next day left a trail of evidence that led police to him.