A long-haul trucker from Yaphank has been convicted of strangling his girlfriend to death in 2023 inside his tractor cab parked near the Shore Motor Inn in Patchogue, Suffolk County prosecutors said.

A Riverhead jury Wednesday convicted Willie Hart, 61, of the second-degree murder of Candace Woodruff, 37, of Texas.

"The defendant behaved cowardly and callously when he took his girlfriend’s life," said Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney. "I am relieved that the jury has held him responsible for his actions."

Hart is due back in court on Dec. 3 for sentencing and faces up to 25 years to life in prison.

John Halverson, Hart's Patchogue-based defense attorney, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Video surveillance showed Woodruff leave her motel room on May 29,

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