LAKEWOOD, Colo. — Family members of an 81-year-old who was murdered in 2021 offered forgiveness during the sentencing to one of the suspects charged in the case but called the other, who is the man's adopted daughter, a "monster."
Savannah Wilson and Jay Griffith pleaded guilty last year to accessory to a crime and concealing a death and agreed to testify against Ricardo Perez, who was accused of beating Gail Wilson to death. On Thursday, Savannah Wilson was sentenced to seven years of probation and Griffith was sentenced to five years.
They had all moved in to Gail Wilson's home in May not long after the death of Gail Wilson's wife. According to prosecutors, over the next few months there was mounting tension between Gail Wilson and Perez due to disagreements over rent, bills, chores and Perez's frequent use of Gail Wilson’s pickup truck.
During Perez's trial, which wrapped up last week, jurors heard testimony that Perez attacked Gail Wilson on Oct. 31, 2021, by punching him in the face and slamming his head against a dresser until Wilson was unable to move. Jurors then heard that Perez beat Gail Wilson to death with a baseball bat. The beating followed an argument earlier that morning over misplaced items in the home, prosecutors said.
Both Savannah Wilson and Griffith testified that Perez ordered them to help clean up and dispose of Gail Wilson’s body, which they did.
Testimony revealed that the three wrapped Gail Wilson’s body in black roofing plastic and loaded his body, a large area of carpet, the bat, and items used to clean the scene into the back of Wilson’s red Ford F-150 pickup truck. Perez and Griffith then drove to the Cheesman Park area of Denver, where they disposed of the items in various garbage cans and dumpsters.
Savannah Wilson and Griffith confessed their roles in the murder to Lakewood Police detectives about 10 days later. Lakewood Police engaged in a coordinated and extensive search for Wilson’s body over several weeks and hundreds of hours, but Wilson’s body was never found.
Last week a jury found Perez guilty of the following:
- First-degree murder
- Tampering with a deceased human body
- Attempt to influence a public servant
- Tampering with physical evidence
He was sentenced to life without parole for the first-degree murder conviction. He was sentenced to an additional 12 years for the charge of tampering with a deceased human body. He received a total of six and half years for the other two counts, and those will be served concurrent to the life sentence.
Perez is also charged in unrelated sexual assault case and is set to go on trial on those charges in October.
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