A British woman who married a double killer she has never met – and who is locked up until 2034 - has revealed she will be moving to the US to be closer to him.
Naomi Wise, 27, fell for Victor Oquendo – nicknamed Animal – after becoming a jail mentor in June last year.
Online chats led to a romance that has stunned Naomi’s family, not least when she revealed she had accepted his marriage proposal earlier this year.
Oquendo, 31, shot dead two rivals in a gangland hit and has served 11 years of a 24-year sentence for crimes which also included three armed robberies in his native Michigan.
Now, Naomi, from Manchester, who shares updates about their life to her TikTok account, says she's taking their relationship to the next step by moving stateside.
In a recent video she uploaded, Naomi revealed that she plans to make the move, to be closer to her husband.
The video received over 60,000 likes and many comments. In one comment, a follower of the page asked if Naomi would be moving to the US before Victor gets out of jail, to which she replied: "Yes, hopefully."
The Brit also revealed on her page that she has started a petition to have her incarcerated husband granted clemency for his crimes.
The petition on Change.org currently has over 5000 signatures.
"I believe Victor should be granted clemency, not only because his case was unjust but he's also a 30-year-old man now who has learnt from his mistakes and wants to be given a second chance at life," she said.
"He is extremely remorseful for that act he committed, he has already served 11 years in prison. If the good behaviour act is approved he will serve an extra six or seven on top of that.
"I believe that he has done his time and paid his debt back to society and should be given a second chance. He is a completely changed man, he is 30-years-old now, he's not an 18-year-old boy who is in a gang he really wants a second chance at life and to give back to society."
Naomi mentored one man before contacting Oquendo at Macomb Correctional Facility in Michigan, after spotting his mugshot on writeaprisoner.com.
It was only after they had been in contact for a fortnight that he admitted he had shot dead two men in 2010 when he was 19.
Naomi says: “I was shocked. It was a lot to take in. I wanted to know how he felt about what he’d done. If he didn’t care that would have been a red flag, but he’s extremely remorseful.
“He struggles to live with himself and has night terrors. It said a lot to me about the person he really is.”
Oquendo shot the two men after a car jacking on May 29, 2010. He approached a white Chevrolet Malibu and armed with a gun, forced the driver to hand over the keys.
He drove away with an accomplice and, the same night, shot dead Fernando Juarez and Gerardo Juarez, before burning the car.
Oquendo admitted two counts of second-degree murder, home invasion and robbery.
But despite his crimes, Naomi says: “Victor is the man I want to be with. From the beginning, I knew it was different."
Oquendo proposed three times on the phone over the next few months, but each time she refused – declaring: “I told him he was mad. We hadn’t even met and had no idea when we could meet due to Covid travel restrictions.”
Then, last September, Naomi received a large bunch of lilies and roses and a black velvet ring box.
She revealed: “I opened the note and it was from Victor, asking me to marry him. He must have got a family member to help send it and along with the note was a beautiful diamond ring.
“This proposal felt serious and real. He rang me that day and I was in tears. He finally got a ‘Yes’. Victor was sending loads of letters and artwork. One was even a drawing of us on our future wedding day, it wasn’t very subtle. My mum must have seen it but didn’t comment.”
The pair have since wed, but Naomi hasn't yet shared how the pair of them were able to get legally married.
