A Florida man was recently convicted of murdering his wife. Samijo Hemans committed the murder in 2021, when he beat his wife to death with a metal pipe. The man believed his wife had been putting some sort of spell on him during their marriage. which led him to confronting her while their young son was in the room. His wife was a beloved member of her community, remembered by her friends and family for her warm spirit and immense care.
A September 18, 2025, news release from the office of Florida State Attorney Melissa Nelson announced that Hemans had been found guilty of second-degree murder. According to the release, the conviction could lead to life in prison.
Deputies from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office responded to a call on May 20, 2021, from the apartment Hemans shared with his wife. When they arrived, they found a 32-year-old woman who was deceased, Action News Jax reported at the time.
According to the release, Hemans told police he had hit his wife, Catherine, with a metal pipe; he was arrested immediately. His story was confirmed when police saw the severe trauma to the dead woman’s head.
Hemans told police he had arrived home before his wife and their baby. About 45 minutes after they got home, he killed her, per the state attorney’s news release. Hemans explained that as his wife walked to their bedroom, he hit her with a pipe on the back of her head. She tried to wrestle the pipe away from him, but he got it back, hitting her “several more times.”
“He said the two were not in any sort of argument, but that he committed the crime after several years of her having performed ‘voodoo’ on him,” the release shared.
An online obituary for his wife listed her name as Catherine Lee Jackson. Her family and friends remembered her as a “natural creator who enjoyed researching creative ideas on Pinterest and providing special sentimental gifts and portraits for family and friends. She was always making and creating something with her God-given talent.”
According to the obituary, “after helping others raise their children,” Jackson gave birth to “her own son-shine” in October 2020. Her son, Jericho, wasn’t even a year old when his mother was killed, possibly in front of him.
The official sentencing for Samijo Hemans will happen at a later date, per the release.
