Zachariah Anderson sentenced, life in prison for Kenosha homicide
KENOSHA, Wis. - Zachariah Anderson, convicted in the 2020 killing of Rosalio Gutierrez, was sentenced to life in prison Tuesday, May 16.
Anderson will be eligible for supervised release after serving 40 years of that life sentence. Gutierrez's family said, while they are grateful for the sentence, they wanted release off the table.
"I wish Zachariah a life in prison. I hope it haunts him. I pray one day he will own up to what he has done," said Kayla Petty.
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Anderson was found guilty at trial in March of first-degree intentional homicide, hiding a corpse and stalking. Gutierrez's body has never been found.
"Mr. Anderson deprived my son of his life – deprived my son’s life from his family, children and friends," said Selia Patterson, Gutierrez's mother.
Rosalio Gutierrez
Not long before his disappearance, Gutierrez began dating Anderson's ex-girlfriend – Sadie Beacham. Prosecutors said jealously led to killing.
"I saw blood all over the walls, etched in my brain forever. I knew then my son was dead," Patterson said.
"I began to feel hatred toward this disgusting man. I want my dad to haunt him forever," said Julian, Gutierrez's son.
Anderson showed little emotion during sentencing, but had the chance to speak before the judge handed down his sentence. He maintained his innocence.
"What I can tell you is I didn’t kill anybody, didn’t stalk anybody, didn’t dispose of a corpse," Anderson said.
"What you did is frightening and is horrible," Judge Bruce Schroeder said as Anderson shook is head in disagreement. "The jury decided that you did it."
READ MORE: Complete FOX6 coverage of the Zachariah Anderson trial
Schroeder also sentenced Anderson to 10 years in prison for hiding corpse and stalking. The way his sentence is structured, Anderson won't be eligible to step out of prison until he is in his 90s.
Patterson hopes time will lead to her son's body being found: "I hope sometime down the road when he’s older and able to reflect on what he did, he does have a change of heart."