A Delmont man accused in the 2023 killing of his wife’s 5-year-old adopted son is seeking a potential plea deal to lesser charges, his attorney told a Westmoreland County judge Friday.
Jacob Maloberti, 36, appeared in court for what was labeled a disposition hearing on criminal homicide and other charges in connection with the death of Landon Maloberti.
Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Christopher Feliciani asked defense attorney Ken Noga if Maloberti was seeking a deal from prosecutors that would allow him to plead guilty to third-degree murder. His wife, Lauren Maloberti, 36, was convicted of third-degree murder following a two-week trial that ended May 14.
“We’re hoping it will be for much less than that,” Noga said.
Prosecutors sought a conviction of first-degree murder against Lauren Maloberti, a crime that carries a mandatory life prison sentence without the possibility of parole. Witnesses at her trial said she physically and emotionally abused and tortured the child, whom she took in as foster son in 2017 and adopted two years later.
Lauren Maloberti faces at least 15 years and potentially up to 80 years behind bars when she is sentenced later this year, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors charged both husband and wife with Landon’s murder, claiming the couple inflicted fatal injuries, failed to protect the child and did not seek prompt medical attention for him when his condition deteriorated.
Jacob Maloberti served as a key witness against his wife. He testified he never saw her strike the child hard enough to cause the more than 100 bruises doctors found on the boy’s body when he was hospitalized Jan. 30, 2023, or the catastrophic brain injury that caused his death less than a week later.
He told jurors that following their arrest, he eventually came to distrust his wife, whom he married in 2021, and now believed she was responsible for Landon’s fatal injuries.
Lauren Maloberti contended her husband, a corrections officer at a state prison in Fayette County, was violent, raped her and violently beat Landon the day before his hospitalization.
During his wife’s trial, Jacob Maloberti told jurors he did not have a plea deal in place in return for his testimony.
Assistant District Attorney Adam Barr confirmed Friday that no plea discussions have taken place and said potential talks will not begin until after Lauren Maloberti is sentenced.
“We just want to get the sentencing done, then we will reach out about how we can resolve his case,” Barr said. “I don’t think it is appropriate to do it before her sentencing.”