Jeremy Vargas Sagastegui (November 1, 1970 – October 13, 1998) was an American killer

convicted In law, a conviction is the verdict reached by a court of law finding a defendant guilty of a crime. The opposite of a conviction is an acquittal (that is, "not guilty"). In Scotland, there can also be a verdict of "not proven", which is consid ...

of three counts of aggravated first-degree

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person wit ...

for the

drowning Drowning is a type of suffocation induced by the submersion of the mouth and nose in a liquid. Most instances of fatal drowning occur alone or in situations where others present are either unaware of the victim's situation or unable to offer a ...

and beating of Kievan Sarbacher, 3, and the shooting deaths of his mother, Melissa Sarbacher, 21, and a second woman, Lisa Vera-Acevedo, 27. The killings occurred on November 19, 1995, in a mobile home in rural

Finley, Washington Finley is a census-designated place (CDP) in Benton County, Washington, United States. The population was 6,012 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. It is located to the southeast of the larger city of Kennewick, Washington, Kennewick. H ...

, located east of

Kennewick Kennewick () is a city in Benton County in the U.S. state of Washington. It is located along the southwest bank of the Columbia River, just southeast of the confluence of the Columbia and Yakima rivers and across from the confluence of the C ...

, where Sagastegui had been babysitting Sarbacher's two children. The second child, a 1-year-old girl, was unharmed. Sometime between the evening hours of November 18 and the early morning hours of November 19, at a residence in Finley, Jeremy Sagastegui

sexually abused Sexual abuse or sex abuse, also referred to as molestation, is abusive sexual behavior by one person upon another. It is often perpetrated using force or by taking advantage of another. Molestation often refers to an instance of sexual assau ...

, beat,

stabbed A stabbing is penetration or rough contact with a sharp or pointed object at close range. ''Stab'' connotes purposeful action, as by an assassin or murderer, but it is also possible to accidentally stab oneself or others. Stabbing differs fro ...

, and then drowned Kievan Sarbacher, a three-year-old boy who was in his care. Sagastegui then waited for Kievan's mother, Melissa Sarbacher, to return home. When she did so, he shot her and her friend, Lisa Vera-Acevedo, who had accompanied Sarbacher home. The convicted triple murderer refused to fight his

execution Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the State (polity), state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to ...

. His mother filed for a stay on his behalf but it was denied as Sagastegui was found competent, and therefore no third party, including his mother, could file on his behalf. He was

executed Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that t ...

on October 13, 1998, by

lethal injection Lethal injection is the practice of injecting one or more drugs into a person (typically a barbiturate, paralytic, and potassium solution) for the express purpose of causing rapid death. The main application for this procedure is capital puni ...

aged 27.

General references

135 Wn.2d 67, STATE v. SAGASTEGUI No. 63744-0. En Banc.
Retrieved on 2007-11-10.
Persons Executed Since 1904 in Washington State
''Washington State Department of Corrections''. Retrieved on 2019-01-12.
State Supreme Court Denies Motion to Delay Sagastegui Execution
''Washington State Office of the Attorney General'' (1998-10-01). Retrieved on 2007-11-10. * Jason Hagey. . ''Tri-City Herald'' (1998-08-18). Archived fro

on 1999-04-18. Retrieved on 2007-11-10. {{DEFAULTSORT:Sagastegui, Jeremy Vargas 1970 births 1998 deaths 20th-century executions of American people American murderers of children American people executed for murder 20th-century executions by Washington (state) People executed by Washington (state) by lethal injection People convicted of murder by Washington (state) Volunteer execution

See also

General references