GREENSBURG, Pa. — Two people who were convicted in the shooting death of a 71-year-old woman in Westmoreland County have received their sentences.
In February, Melissa Fox-Beacom, 51, and Matthew Bates, 20, were found guilty of killing Alice Robson after a week-long trial. They were convicted on charges of first-degree murder, criminal solicitation, criminal conspiracy and abuse of a corpse.
Information shared by Westmoreland County District Attorney Nicole W. Ziccarelli’s Office on Tuesday said Fox-Beacom and Bates were sentenced to life in prison without parole. The sentence came from Common Pleas Judge Meagan Bilik-DeFazio.
Robson, Fox-Beacom’s mother, was found shot twice in the head on Dec. 11, 2023, in a crawlspace under the porch of her house on Furnace Lane in St. Clair Township.
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Police said Robert Jack, a third defendant, also conspired to kill Robson. According to court testimony, Bates gave Jack a gun so he could kill Robson, at Bates and Fox-Beacom’s direction, the DA’s office says. The gun was later found in Donegal Lake.
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Jack is scheduled to appear in court in July.
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