MARICOPA COUNTY, Ariz. (TCN) — A 58-year-old man has been sentenced to life in prison plus 21 years for the murder of his stepfather and the attempted murder of his mother.
According to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office, a woman called police to request a welfare check on her 91-year-old father, Oscar Casdorph. The two had had dinner plans, but he was reportedly not answering the door. When officers arrived, they found Casdorph and his 81-year-old wife, whose name has not been released, bludgeoned with a hammer. Casdorph was deceased, but his wife survived the attack.
Arizona’s Family reports that in addition to being bludgeoned with a hammer, Casdorph’s wife had been shot in the head.
Investigators identified Gary Crawford as the suspect in the attacks. He was Casdorph’s stepson — the son of Casdorph’s wife — and had recently moved into the home with the couple. He was missing, along with one of the household’s cars, and investigators learned he took Casdorph’s bank card and withdrew $1,500. He was arrested after police tracked the missing card, according to the county attorney’s office.
According to Arizona’s Family, Crawford said during his interview with police that he “snapped” and blacked out in anger.
Crawford’s sister, Allison Fordham, told KPNX he was a “ticking time bomb” and she was not surprised by the attack.
Crawford pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and attempted first-degree murder and was sentenced to life in prison plus 21 years on Sept. 23.
Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell said, “This defendant’s family took him in, and he betrayed them in the worst way imaginable. … This sentence ensures he spends the rest of his life in prison, exactly where he belongs. My thoughts are with the victims’ families as they continue to grieve and try to heal.”
Casdorph’s obituary read, “Oscar, a proud veteran of the U.S. Air Force during the Korean War, lived a long and full life, marked by dedication to his family, deep compassion for others, and a steady, gentle spirit that touched everyone who knew him.”
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