Add another victim to the nation's most prolific serial killer's list. King County, Washington prosecutors have officially charged "Green River Killer' Gary Ridgway with a 49th murder, the death of 20-year-old mother Becky Marrero in 1982.Marrero's remains were found in a steep ravine near Auburn, Washington in December 2010 by teenagers exploring the area.
In 2003, when Ridgway pleaded guilty to 48 counts of murder, he was given the deal to avoid the death penalty if he would plead guilty to those murders and any future murders in which the evidence pointed to him.
Evidence Confirms Confession
At that time, Ridgway confessed to the murder of Marrero, but prosecutors had no evidence that corroborated his confession.
"Ridgway confessed to killing Becky Marrero, but he was unable to provide sufficient details to warrant a charge," Prosecuting Attorney Dan Satterberg said. "The discovery of Ms. Marrero's remains now gives us the evidence we need to file this charge."
Ridgway, now 61, is expected to plea guilty again this week when he is formally charged with Marrero's murder, be given his 49th life sentence and returned to the Washington State Penitentiary in Walla Walla.
What the Families Deserved
"When the late Norm Maleng made the difficult decision in 2003 to trade the possibility of the death penalty for the truth about unsolved cases, he had cases like this one and families like the Marreros in mind," Satterberg said. "It wasn't about what Gary Ridgway deserved. ... It was about what the families' deserved."
"The Marreros have the right to face the man who killed Becky and the opportunity to remind us all about what was taken from them," Satterberg said. "They finally have the answers, and with these charges and the anticipated guilty plea, they will have obtained the truth, accountability and ... a degree of justice."
On December 3, 1982, Becky Marrero left her 3-year-old daughter with her aunt and headed to the Seattle airport. She was never seen alive again. Her remains were found about 100 feet from where another one of Ridgway's victims was found in 2003.
If Ridgway is ever charged with a murder outside of King County, Washington, he could face the death penalty. Otherwise, his plea deal remains in effect.
See Also:
'Green River Killer' Charged With 49th Murder
Earlier Articles:
Skull May Be Linked to Green River Killer
Green River Killer Suspected in Oregon Murder
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