PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — A man accused of beating and burning the body of another man in 2013 has been sentenced to six years in prison after pleading guilty to manslaughter.
The Oregonian/OregonLive reports 53-year-old Ervin Golden Jr. had been scheduled to go on trial for murder on Monday, but he decided to plead guilty to the lesser charge Friday.
Golden and a second man had both been accused of killing Jeremy Purcell, who lived in a southeast Portland garage.
During a 2015 trial that ended in mistrial, the prosecution said the men were retaliating against Purcell because they believed Purcell had stolen Golden’s wallet and a car belonging to one of Golden’s associates, a cocaine dealer.
The Oregon Supreme Court later ordered that the murder case against Golden’s co-defendant be dropped.