WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — A man who delivered appliances was sentenced to life in prison Wednesday for killing a 75-year-old lady in Florida by assaulting her and lighting her on fire.
The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office gave us this picture of Jorge Dupre Lachazo, but it doesn’t say when it was taken.
The appliance delivery man was sentenced to life in prison on April 5, 2023, for killing a 75-year-old woman in Florida by assaulting her and lighting her on fire. (AP quotes the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office)
Court documents show that a judge in Palm Beach County sentenced Jorge Dupre Lachazo to two life sentences and a 30-year sentence. After a three-day trial in January, the 24-year-old was found guilty of first-degree murder, burglary, and setting fires.
Officials say that Dupre Lachazo and another man brought a washer and dryer that Evelyn Smith Udell bought from Best Buy to her house in Boca Raton, Florida, in August 2019.
The other man stepped outside after putting the appliances together and said he heard cries a few minutes later. He found Udell lying on the ground and phoned the police.
Investigators said that Dupre Lachazo drove away in the delivery truck, but he was later stopped by a police officer who had come to help.
Police said that near Udell’s body, they recovered a rubber mallet that was used in the attack and a can of paint thinner that Dupre Lachazo used to ignite the fire.
Prosecutors alleged that Dupre Lachazo’s prints were on each of them. Investigators also noticed that the woman’s pocketbook had been messed with, which suggests that the attack was done to steal money.
Attorneys for Dupre Lachazo didn’t deny that he attacked the elderly woman, but they said the killing wasn’t planned or deliberate.
