U of I Student Sentenced in Stabbing Death of Ex-Girlfriend

A former University of Illinois graduate student sentenced Wednesday to 46 years in prison for stabbing his ex-girlfriend to death.

Judge Heidi Ladd sentenced 30-year-old Yongfei Ci after he pleaded that he not be viewed through one act he acknowledged was "a horrible thing."

Ci pleaded guilty in May to stabbing 25-year-old Mengchen Huang to death in her apartment on Sept, 27, 2013.

He had moved to Rhode Island but made a trip back after learning she had a new boyfriend.

Huang's roommate said Ci forced his way into the apartment that night and ordered the roommate in the bathroom during the incident. Ci was later found at a motel in the 1200 block of West Anthony in Champaign and arrested without incident, police said.

A letter from Huang's parents, sent from China, was read before Ci's sentencing in which they called him "an entitled narcissist" who took advantage of their daughter's kind heart.

Ci said he couldn't imagine the pain they went through.