A man who repeatedly hit his estranged wife in the head with a hammer after she rejected his offer of reconciliation received a 15-year prison sentence Monday, according to Allen Superior Court records.

Raul H. Garcia, 69, came to Fort Wayne from North Carolina in July so that his wife could sign divorce papers, according to the court documents.

But when Garcia asked whether they could reconcile instead, she rejected the idea and began to laugh at him, he later told police. That’s when he started to choke her and then hit her with a hammer.

Garcia previously pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated battery as part of a plea agreement with Allen County prosecutors who recommended he be sentenced to 15 years in prison.

A judge Monday accepted that plea agreement and recommended sentence, but gave Garcia 218 days’ credit for time served in the Allen County Jail.