Killer of US tourist Denise Thiem on Spain¡¯s Santiago Way gets 23 years
A jury in Le¨®n found Miguel ?ngel Mu?oz guilty of murdering the woman while on the pilgrimage route
A Spanish court has sentenced Miguel ?ngel Mu?oz to 23 years in prison for murdering Denise Pikka Thiem, a US citizen who was traveling alone on the popular pilgrimage route known as the Camino de Santiago when she was attacked by the Spaniard.
A jury recently found Mu?oz, 41, guilty of killing Thiem on April 5, 2015, after she took a detour from the main road to visit the small municipality of Castrillo de Polvazares, in the northern Spanish province of Le¨®n.
Her disappearance triggered a months-long search, with US Senator John McCain offering Spain help from the FBI to find the Arizona native.
Authorities only found the body after Mu?oz confessed and took them to the place where he had buried it ¨C minus the hands, which he had cut off and which were never found. Despite initially admitting to the crime, Mu?oz later retracted his confession.
Public prosecutors had sought 25 years for Thiem¡¯s killer, while the private prosecution was pressing for 27 years. The Provincial Court of Le¨®n handed down a 20-year conviction for the murder, and three more years for violent robbery, as Mu?oz took the pilgrim¡¯s cash and later attempted to change the dollars into euros at a local bank.
At the trial, officers had explained how all evidence kept leading them straight to Mu?oz, a man whom neighbors have described as anti-social and prone to odd behavior.
Two other women who also walked the pilgrimage trail had previously reported being assaulted along the same stretch of road by a man matching his description.
English version by Susana Urra.
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