Slain couple’s son sentenced to prison for their deaths

ONEONTA, Ala. — The son of an Alabama couple has been sentenced to prison for killing his parents and burying their bodies in a shallow grave.

Leo Santiago Chavez, 20, was sentenced Wednesday to two consecutive life sentences, plus 10 years, for the murder of his mother, Adalberta Chavez Ruiz, and his father, Ricardo Santiago Gonzales, AL.com reported.

Ruiz and Gonzales were reported missing on Dec. 16, 2017, by family members who had not heard from the couple. The relatives went to the couples’ home in Cleveland and found blood, authorities said.

The investigation led authorities to Chavez — who was 17 at the time — and three other men, who were arrested over the next few weeks. Jose Gamaliel Villanueva, 20, and Jose Guevara-Valadez, 23, and a juvenile are also charged in connection with the case.

Prosecutors said Chavez and his accomplices fatally shot Ruiz and Gonzales, wrapped their bodies in black plastic and dumped them in the shallow grave in Oneonta. Authorities recovered the couples’ remains on Jan. 3, 2018.

Chavez, of Blount County, was convicted in March of three counts of capital murder and two counts of abusing a corpse. District Attorney Pamela L. Casey had asked the court for life without the possibility of parole during the sentencing hearing in the summer, but it didn’t happen. She said that disappointed some family members.

Some of them were in the courtroom as the sentencing was imposed Wednesday, and Assistant District Attorney Scott Gilliland indicated Chavez apologized to them and asked for forgiveness.

Chavez would be required to serve 60 years before parole consideration.