Local
Judge Throws Book at Blair Men
By Chris Forshey
Jan 30, 2007, 08:59

Two Blair County men who burned a murder victim's body on Blandburg Mountain last year after a drug deal gone bad were sentenced Monday in Cambria County Court.

Judge Dave Tulowitzki threw the book at 28-year-old John Mease of Bellwood and 31-year-old Damien Pierce of Altoona telling them that considering what they were involved in, their plea agreements earned them a break. In exchange for his guilty plea on charges of criminal conspiracy to commit robbery and consummation of a crime, Pierce will serve three-and-a-half to 10 years in a state prison. Mease, who entered a guilty plea to charges of criminal conspiracy to commit robbery and aiding in a felony, will serve two years, 9 months to 10 years in prison.

Both Mease and Pierce admitted to robbing James Tucker of Altoona and then burning his body. Tucker's body was found shot and burned along Fire Tower Road in Read Township last May. A third man, Torone Dixon of Philadelphia, was accused of being the main gunman who pulled the trigger, killing Tucker. Dixon was shot and killed during a stand off at the Cambria County Prison last year.

Judge Tulowitzki also ordered the men to reimburse Tucker's mom the cost of his funeral. A third person, Christina DeStefano of Bellwood, will be sentenced next month on a charge of criminal conspiracy to commit robbery. She's accused of driving the men to the location where Tucker was shot and killed.


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