TALLMADGE, Ohio — A 78-year-old man from Summit County has been sentenced in the two cold case murders in Tallmadge from the 1970s.
Back in March, a jury found Gustave Sapharas guilty of aggravated murder, murder in the first degree involving an abduction, murder in the second degree, and maiming or disfiguring another.
RELATED: 78-year-old man found guilty of 2 cold case murders in Tallmadge from the 1970s
On Wednesday, Sapharas was sentenced to life in prison without the chance of parole.
Retired Summit County Captain Doug Bohon, who reopened the case, was able to speak on what this sentence means to the community: "I think it was a great sentence, a long time coming unfortunately, he did walk free for a long time, but you can never stop, you don't just get a pass because you got away with it for half of a century."
Bohon went on to say, "I hope every police department looks at their cold cases, I hope they find a little piece of something that can lead them to another something."
Bohon believes every trail of breadcrumbs should be followed.
"There are real people out there still affected by this," he said.
Karen Bentz was 18 years old when she was found stabbed to death on the side of Indian Hills Drive in Tallmadge on April 28, 1970, states a release from the Summit County Prosecutor's Office.
Loretta Jean Davis, 20, was found stabbed to death on Sept. 28, 1975, on the side of Congress Lake Road in Portage County, according to the prosecutor's office. Her car and wallet were found in Tallmadge.
Sapharas was arrested and indicted in 2019 for the murders but was charged under what Ohio law was when the crimes were committed, the release states.
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