Chicago-area man gets 24 years for student’s drug death

WHEATON, Ill. – A suburban Chicago man convicted in the drug-induced death of a Spanish foreign exchange student has been sentenced to 24 years in prison.

DuPage County Judge Liam Brennan sentenced 38-year-old Francis Emanuele of Downers Grove to 20 years behind bars Friday night for the drug-induced homicide of the 15-year-old girl and four years for indecent solicitation of a child. Emanuele pleaded guilty to the charges in November.

The girl’s host parents found her dead at home on May 3, 2016. Prosecutors say investigators found an oral syringe with methadone in her bedroom and determined Emanuele gave her the drug. They say Emanuele knew the girl through another exchange student living with his family and exchanged sexually explicit texts with the girl.

Prosecutors sought a 27-year sentence. Emanuele’s attorneys asked for 11 years.