Nice Bend, Kansas
AP
—
The investigation into the Jan. 24, 1980, capturing dying of Mary Robin Walter, 23, of Nice Bend, had gone chilly till 2022, when a detective persuaded Barton County Sheriff Brian Bellendir to reopen the case and use know-how and strategies that weren’t out there on the time.
The brand new proof pointed to Steven L. Hanks, who was 25 on the time and had been a suspect early on. The Kansas Legal professional Common’s Workplace mentioned in a press release Friday that it was Hanks’ admission in new interviews that allowed authorities to cost him in 2022, when he was residing in Burden, Kansas.
Hanks, now 70, acquired his sentence for second-degree homicide Thursday. His plea settlement in August known as for not lower than 5 years and no more than 25 years. However Barton County District Courtroom Decide Steve Johnson on Thursday departed upward from the plea settlement and sentenced Hanks to not lower than 10 years and no more than 25 years.
The sheriff mentioned they consider it’s the oldest chilly case in Kansas to be solved and end in a conviction.
“It bothers me that lots of the individuals who have been so affected by this tragic crime have since handed away previous to bringing the suspect to justice,” Bellendir mentioned in a press release Friday. “I think about myself lucky that I had the sources and the diligent personnel to shut this case. The credit score for fixing this murder goes to the devoted officers that had the tenacity to convey it to a conviction.”
Walter was a spouse, mom and nursing college pupil when she was shot a number of instances. Police discovered a .22-caliber handgun on the scene and confirmed it was the homicide weapon. In keeping with the sheriff, no one had actively investigated the case since no less than 1982 till they reopened it, the Wichita Eagle reported.
Sgt. Detective Adam Hales and Lt. David Paden re-interviewed Hanks, a neighbor of Walter on the time, and a earlier suspect. In his interviews, Hanks admitted to killing Walter, the legal professional normal’s workplace mentioned. The prosecutor, Affiliate Deputy Legal professional Common Jessica Domme, thanked them for his or her diligence.
“Robin’s killer was lastly delivered to justice due to their dedication and dedication to this chilly case,” Domme mentioned within the assertion.
Hanks hung out in jail for an additional crime. He was arrested in 1981 and charged with rape, battery, theft and housebreaking. He was sentenced in 1983 and discharged in 1993, in response to the Kansas Division of Corrections.
The statements from the sheriff and legal professional normal’s workplace, and on-line court docket information, don’t say whether or not Hanks ever revealed his motive for killing Walter. The sheriff’s workplace mentioned Bellendir was not out there for remark Saturday. Officers with the legal professional normal’s workplace and Hanks’ legal professional didn’t instantly reply to requests for remark from The Related Press on Saturday.
