Rock Hill man charged with wife’s gruesome murder sentenced to 30 years
ROCK HILL, S.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — A Rock Hill man accused of gruesomely killing his wife has received a decades-long sentence, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of South Carolina announced Wednesday.
Lawrence Florentine, 56, of Rock Hill, will serve 30 years after being charged with interstate domestic violence resulting in death.
Court records state that in December of 2019, authorities in York County responded to numerous calls regarding a domestic incident with Florentine and his wife Nicole where Florentine was physically abusive and threatened to kill Nicole.
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Three months later, the house burned down in a fire, and arson charges were filed against Florentine. That June, a makeshift grave was found in Kentucky by a graveskeeper at a cemetery and partially charred remains of a woman were discovered and later examined.
The remains were positively identified as Florentine’s wife.
Records showed Florentine had also purchased a shovel and a gas can at a nearby hardware store. Florentine was arrested later that month in Denver, Colorado.
An autopsy later determined that Nicole was shot in the head before her body was discarded, the attorney’s office said.
“Nicole’s senseless murder reminds us that domestic violence can happen to anyone and we all must work to protect and support those experiencing abuse,” Adair F. Boroughs, U.S. Attorney for the District of South Carolina said in a written statement. “We hope this sentence brings some measure of closure to her loved ones as they remember Nicole.”
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