Prosecutor: Man abused his wife physically, emotionally and sexually while on vacation in a Waldorf home

Waldorf resident Joseph John Bonaiuto was sentenced to eight years in prison by a judge after physically, psychologically and sexually abusing his partner for hours, prosecutors said.

On December 26, 2023, officers were called to Bonaiuto's Waldorf residence to conduct a welfare check after receiving a call from his brother stating that he was holding a woman hostage. Upon arrival, she opened the door and “appeared to have been crying prior to arriving.”

Investigators spoke to Bonaiuto, who said he had previously pointed a gun at both his head and the woman's head.

The subsequent investigation into the incident revealed that Bonaiuto and his victim were at the house on Christmas Day when he became angry with his wife.

He went for another walk and then retreated to his bedroom to get a gun. He unloaded it, put it to his head and pulled the trigger, prosecutors said.

He then walked down the stairs with the unloaded gun, pointed it at the woman and pulled the trigger after ordering her to get on her knees.

“Bonaiuto asked the victim if she was afraid of him; the victim responded 'yes,'” prosecutors said. “He then put the gun to the victim's head and fired. Bonaiuto dropped the gun after the victim flinched.”

Shortly after this attack, Bonaiuto forced the woman to perform a sexual act on him.

“During the assault, Bonaiuto gave the victim breaks to cry, blow his nose and drink something,” investigators said.

After the attack, Bonaiuto and the victim eventually went to sleep, he in the bedroom and she on the couch.

The next day, Bonaiuto drove to the courthouse to pick up the divorce papers, stopping by his daughter's house to give her some details.

She then reported the attack to Bonaiuto’s brother, who called the police.

Bonaiuto admitted to police officers that he had assaulted the victim for several hours, telling them that he had behaved like a “disgusting degenerate” towards her and had treated her “as badly as she deserved at that moment”.

Bonaiuto pleaded guilty in June to first-degree assault and fourth-degree sexual assault.

At the sentencing hearing, the deputy district attorney asked that Bonaiuto be sentenced to 20 years in prison, with an additional six years suspended due to the “seriousness of the crime.” He added that he must be “held accountable for his actions” and that the victim did not deserve to be treated in this “inhumane, cruel, violent and selfish manner.”

In addition to his prison sentence, Bonaiuto was sentenced to five years of supervised probation upon his release and must register as a Class I sex offender for 15 years.

“For hours (the victim) was abused by you,” Judge Carrington Martin said before Bonaiuto's sentencing. “The consequences of your actions, regardless of the verdict, are that you hurt her.”

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