Murderess unveils frightful makeover complete with cornrows and crochet crucifix as she’s imprisoned for life for drugging and killing three men

DAILYMAIL.COM • 8h ago

By LAUREN ACTON-TAYLOR, US NEWS REPORTER 20:59 06 Oct 2026, updated 21:46 06 Oct 2026

A woman in New York City showed off a bizarre new look as she was handed a life sentence over the murder of three men, as the victims’ families screamed and sobbed in court.

Tabitha Bundrick, 39, was sentenced to 27 years to life on Tuesday after pleading guilty to killing Mario Paullan, 42, Miguel Navez, 39, and Abrihan Fernandez, 34, with lethal doses of fentanyl in 2023 and 2024.

Bundrick was emotionless with her hands cuffed behind her back as she entered the Lower Manhattan courtroom with cornrow braids embellished with beads, and wore red painted lips, false eyelashes, and a hand-crocheted brown crucifix hanging around her neck.

The convicted murderer was previously seen looking slim with long, flowing hair and minimal makeup in a picture before her arrest.

Prosecutors described Bundrick’s murder of the three men as part of a ‘deliberate and repetitive scheme’ to drug and rob them.

The victims’ families delivered powerful and emotional victim impact statements, including the distraught words of Fernandez’s mother, Brigida Rodriguez, spoken through a translator.

‘Half of my heart is missing because she does not have one,’ she angrily yelled at Bundrick, who refused to look at any of the victims’ families.

‘I thank god that my son’s death will not be in vain… he was looking for a better future in this country.

‘If she wanted to rob him, why didn’t she just do that? Why did she have to kill him?’

As Bundrick continued to avoid eye contact with the victim’s family, Rodriguez grew more frustrated and directed her words directly at Bundrick.

‘Look at me, why do you not look at me?’ she said as she angrily gestured at her son’s killer.

As she sobbed in front of the judge, Rodriguez held up her hand to Bundrick and the courtroom.

The grief-stricken mother explained that she was wearing the class ring Bundrick had tried, and failed, to pry off of her son’s finger after she had killed him.

Fernandez was Bundrick’s final victim in February 2024. He had been walking on the street near his apartment when Bundrick turned around to begin following him.

The pair chatted before she went upstairs and gave Fernandez the lethal drug. Hours later, Bundrick was seen exiting and entering his apartment numerous times before ‘lugging huge bags of Mr Fernandez’s property’ down the street, Assistant District Attorney Dafna Yoran said.

His widow Natalie spoke with a shaky voice to the court, describing her husband’s death as the ‘most painful chapters’ of her life.

‘His death serves as a reminder that not everyone deserves kindness,’ she said.

‘He gave me strength. He was my partner. Losing him has left a void words can’t describe… there are no true winners here.’

Fernandez’s murder was the third that matched a pattern seen in the deaths of Paullan and Navez.

Paullan and a friend were approached by Bundrick on April 30, 2023.

She spoke to them under the guise of selling soap before offering them sex in exchange for money and luring them to an abandoned apartment in Washington Heights.

Both men were given fentanyl-laced drugs which she had told them was cocaine. Paullan’s friend woke the next morning with his friend lying dead beside him.

Bundrick’s victim was left with foam frothing at his mouth, and his belongings, including his cellphone, had been stolen, Assistant District Attorney Yoran said in court on Tuesday.

Paullan’s daughter Eileen tearfully spoke through a translator, telling the court that ‘since he left, life no longer has laughter.’

Speaking to Bundrick, she said: ‘You will take a sentence, but I will take an entire life without my father.’

Paullan’s sister Veronica pleaded with the judge to hand Bundrick the maximum sentence ‘so that this woman will never see the street again.’

‘She killed him cruelly like she did the other victims,’ she said. ‘For my family, I ask for justice.’

Navez was killed on September 27, 2023, at his apartment in Washington Heights after Bundrick gave him fentanyl-laced drugs. His body was found by his brother three days later, with many of his belongings missing.

Navez’s brother took a deep breath before addressing the court through a translator on Tuesday, and said that his brother was who had brought his family happiness.

‘That will never be the same,’ he added. ‘My mother, a person of 81 years, stayed with the hope to one day see her son again and hug him.’

Bundrick was arrested on March 5, when investigators discovered four pairs of the victims’ sneakers in her home.

As Yoran presented closing statements, she said: ‘Your Honor, there are three broken families in front of you.’

‘[Bundrick] is still unable to take responsibility for her actions… she continues to lie to minimize her actions,’ prosecutors said, as Bundrick shook her head in disagreement.

According to the prosecution, Bundrick claimed that the three men had approached her instead of the other way around.

Bundrick’s legal team asked for a stay of sentencing before the defendant spoke to the court in a soft, quiet tone.

‘I would like to apologize to the family and to everyone. I would like to address to the family and the victims… this wasn’t supposed to happen. This wasn’t supposed to be this way,’ Bundrick said.

‘I was suffering from a drug addiction that caused me to make bad decisions… the fact my bad decisions would cause others and my family pain… I am taking full responsibility for my actions and what I have done with my life.

‘I apologize for everything I have done.’

Bundrick entered a guilty plea on September 8.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg Jr said on Tuesday: ‘Tabitha Bundrick’s absolutely callous conduct has left three devastated families.

‘Today in court, we heard powerful statements from the loved ones of the defendant’s victims, who are still mourning in anguish.

‘I hope this prison sentence will allow for some measure of healing.’

Judge Kyu Paek sentenced Bundrick to three concurrent 25-to-life sentences for each count of murder, as well as an additional consecutive two years behind bars, with three years probation, for one count of assault.

She suspended the execution of the sentence for 30 days before she addressed the victims’ families, commending them for their courage in speaking to the court.

‘There is no sentence I can impose to bring your husband, your brother or your son back,’ she added, but hoped that her sentencing would bring some closure.

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