Vincent Quevedo has been a fugitive for 15 years. He now faces prison time for violating probation given him in 1984 for a teen's death.
By SUE CARLTON
© St. Petersburg Times, published May 18, 1999
TAMPA -- For 15 years, Vickie Renee Newton Wilke's family lived with the mystery of her disappearance, solved sadly this year after they saw a Jane Doe sketch on the Internet and learned she had been killed in Florida in 1983.
This week, they traveled more than 1,000 miles from their home in Gun Barrel, Texas, hoping to find closure in a Tampa courtroom. And they may get it at a hearing next month.
The man who pleaded guilty to manslaughter in Wilke's death was in court Monday, accused of violating his probation sentence in 1984. Monday, prosecutors offered 34-year-old Vincent Quevedo, who turned himself in last month, 15 years in prison in exchange for admitting to the violation, and the judge offered 13 years. But Quevedo wants a probation violation hearing, which is scheduled in front of Circuit Judge Cynthia Holloway on June 4.
It's unclear what prompted Quevedo to turn himself in after 15 years as a fugitive.
Wilke's family said she was 17 when she hitchhiked to Florida. Quevedo told investigators in 1983 that he suffocated Wilke -- her identity not known until this year -- while trying to keep her quiet as they had sex in his car, a prosecutor said.
He was sentenced to seven years of probation.
At the June hearing, the state will ask for the maximum 15-year sentence.
"As cliche as it sounds," said Assistant State Attorney Leland Baldwin, "the guy's gotten away with murder."
Action |
Arts |
Business |
Citrus |
Columnists |
Floridian
Opinion |
Entertainment |
Floridian |
Hernando |
Pasco |
Sports
State |
Tampa Bay |
Travel |
World & Nation |
Taste
© Copyright 2006
St. Petersburg Times. All rights reserved.