More than a dozen Henry County officials worked Tuesday during the excavation of a field on a sod farm to try to bring closure to the family of Victor Cruz Sanchez.
Robert Lee “Robby” Burns, 29, wearing an orange Henry County Jail jumpsuit, pointed out areas of the field to dig up. Burns was one of four people charged with killing Sanchez during a robbery in March 2009.
“My number one concern is trying to find the victim’s body for his family,” said Henry County District Attorney Doug Valeska. “Death is bad enough, but at least you can have some final closure when you find the body.”
On the same day as Sanchez’s former wife, Jessica Lynn Wilson, was scheduled for trial on the conspiracy to commit murder charge filed against her, Burns went to authorities with information about the location of Sanchez’s body.
Burns, Wilson’s mother, Tamara Lynn Burns Wilson, 47, and Victor Manuel Solorzano, were all charged with conspiracy to commit murder in Sanchez’s death. Solorzano remains wanted by the authorities, and is believed to be in Mexico.
Valeska said he offered reduced charges and prison sentences to three of the four people in exchange for the location of the victim’s body. Valeska offered Burns a plea deal of murder with a 20-year prison term if he showed police where he and Solorzano buried the body. He offered 19-year-old Jessica Wilson and Tamara Wilson each manslaughter charges with 13-year prison terms if the body was located.
“They stole a backhoe from the sod farm and buried him late at night,” Valeska said.
Abbeville Police Investigator Tim Ingram said the inquiry started as a missing person report, and as the investigation developed they learned about the homicide. Ingram previously released information that Sanchez was apparently stabbed and killed by blunt force trauma to the head.
Valeska said Sanchez was killed during a robbery at Roberts Trailer Park where he lived with the four suspects, located off Alabama Highway 10 near Abbeville.
Valeska characterized the day-long search, which even brought Henry County Judge Derek Peterson to the scene, as unusual because the Houston-Henry County judicial circuit had not searched for a homicide victim before in a similar manner. Peterson halted the Henry County criminal trial week for authorities to dig for the body.
“This is the first one I’ve ever had where we’ve had a body we couldn’t find,” Valeska said. “It’s unusual ... actually taking the time to bury the body. It shows cool, calm and collected.”
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