It happened in the pre-dawn hours on a tree-lined street with single-family homes. An older woman, a mother of two, her fiancé, two daughters, and a friend on a sleep-over were home at the time of the break-in.
The men forced a door open and yelled that they were the police. One man zip tied the older woman and the children to their beds and covered their mouths with duct tape. Another man headed for the basement stairs in search of the fiancé’s marijuana. That man shot the young mother who was going up the stairs from the basement.
As the men fled the robbery scene empty handed, the home security system caught them on video.
The young mother didn’t survive. Local police broadcast the images from the security video and through tips from the community; they had the criminals in custody a short time later.
A judge sentenced one man to 55-years in federal prison. He did not have a gun during the commission of the crime; however, his presence aided and abetted the other men, which resulted in the death of the young mother.
After a jury found them guilty, the same judge sentenced both of the two other men to LIFE in federal prison plus 20-years. #innocentchildren #drugdealer
After the sentencing, the Acting U.S. Attorney said,
“All gun crimes are disturbing, but home invasions are especially horrifying for the victims.”
Worth Mentioning: The young mother’s fiancé attempted to hide his drugs and cash before the police responded to the crime scene. They found many pounds of marijuana, marijuana edibles, and more than $80,000 in cash. They arrested the fiancé; he pleaded guilty to drug charges, and a judge sentenced him to 16-21 years in prison.
Be sure to email me if you hear of a true-crime you think would be good in a book. I’ll research it, share it and possibly use it one of my novels.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Lincoln Journal Star, 1011 NOW