After more than 23 hours of deliberations, jurors reached a verdict in the Bella Bond murder trial.

The jury had recessed on Friday afternoon and returned to court on Monday morning for their fourth day of deliberations.

The existence of a verdict was announced shortly after 10:30 a.m. by a court officer. The verdict is expected to be read in about a half hour.

Michael Patrick McCarthy, the ex-boyfriend of the toddler's mother, was charged with first-degree murder. He has pleaded not guilty and his defense attorney, Jonathan Shapiro, alleged that Rachelle Bond, Bella's mother, killed the child.

Prosecutors alleged that McCarthy fatally punched 2-year-old Bella and dumped her body in Boston Harbor in summer 2015. The body would later wash up on Deer Island, wrapped in blankets and inside a trash bag.

McCarthy and Bond were arrested in September 2015. Bond was charged with being an accessory after the fact and larceny over $250 by false pretenses.

Bond pleaded guilty earlier this year to the charges, as part of a plea deal that included her testimony against McCarthy during the trial. Prosecutors built their case in large part around what Bond said, making her a key witness.

But Shapiro, McCarthy's defense attorney, repeatedly noted inconsistencies between what Bond told police in September 2015 and what she was telling the jury while on the witness stand. He argued that there is no evidence linking his client to the alleged murder.

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