TUCSON (KGUN9-TV) - Life in prison with no chance of getting out. That was the sentence handed down to a man convicted in one of Tucson's most notorious murders.
Luis Vargas standing by his innocence.
"I had nothing to do with whatever happened to Kay Read. I apologize for....I don't really apologize for anything, man, because I didn't do it. So, good luck," said Vargas.
Luis Vargas said that right after hearing members of Kay Read's family say their faith directs them to forgive him, as hard as that might be.
It has been more than eight years since the handicapped Sunday school teacher Kay Read disappeared.
Her body has never been found.
Read's family is still hopeful that Vargas will one day disclose where he put Kay Read's body.
John Seagle, Read's brother-in-law said "the comment he made for a second, kind of infuriated me; then I thought, 'you know, that's the type of individual he appears to be. Somebody that would lie through his teeth."
In court, Read's family spoke of her loving, gentle nature, and how their mother died of grief at age 95, two years after Kay Read disappeared without a trace.
Polio left Kay Read dependent on crutches and leg braces. Her sister found them abandoned in her apartment.
The door had not been forced.
Her van was found burning a few blocks away.
Someone was caught on camera using her debit card. Investigator say that man was Vargas.
Members of Vargas own family want him to tell Kay Read's family how to find her remains. His aunt stops short of conceding he killed Kay Read, but says he must know something that would help Kay Read's family find her body.
Yolanda Vargas, Vargas' aunt told KGUN 9, "I'm very happy that they forgive him because it takes a big person for forgive. I'm sure it's heartbreaking for them."
Kay Read's sister Mary says in the years of prison time ahead, Luis Vargas will see a smiling face urging him to tell what he knows.
"He's gonna see Kay. He's gonna see her smile every morning and every night and he's going to go to sleep and she's gonna be right there talking to him," said Mary Seagle, Kay Read's sister.
