Couple Get 30 Years In Prison For Western Maryland Slaying

CUMBERLAND, Md. (AP) — A West Virginia couple are going to prison for killing a man during a botched robbery attempt in Cumberland in January.

Thirty-two-year-old Jason Wilt of Keyser and 28-year-old Erika Dersin of Short Gap were sentenced Wednesday in Cumberland after pleading guilty to second-degree murder.

They were each sentenced to 30 years.

Prosecutors dropped other charges in return for their guilty pleas.

Assistant State's Attorney Erich Bean says in an email the couple knew the victim, 25-year-old Rhyshon Smith of Baltimore, through illegal drug activity.

Bean says they picked up Smith in Wilt's car and then tried to rob him. Bean says Smith resisted and Wilt stabbed him several times. Smith was found mortally wounded along Route 51 just south of the city.