HAZLE TWP., LUZERNE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — A man has been sentenced to the maximum of 20 to 40 years in prison after being found guilty of third-degree murder for killing 41-year-old Helena Johnson in 2021.
Joseph Sarmiento, 40, of New York, has been sentenced after being found guilty but mentally ill of third-degree murder.
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Johnson, of Massachusetts, was found dead on June 6, 2021, at the Red Carpet Inn in Hazle Township. A forensic pathologist testified that Johnson was struck a minimum of 10 times and that there was evidence of strangulation.
“This defendant’s attempts to avoid accountability for the brutal killing of Miss Johnson ended today with this decades-long prison sentence,” Attorney General Sunday said. “We hope this verdict and sentence provide a sense of solace for the people who loved her and miss her every day.”
The Attorney General said the mentally ill charge will hold the same sentencing guidelines, but will allow Sarmiento to receive mental health treatment during incarceration.
