Gary man receives life term in 7 women’s deaths

  • Print
Listen to this story

Subscriber Benefit

As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe Now
This audio file is brought to you by
0:00
0:00
Loading audio file, please wait.
  • 0.25
  • 0.50
  • 0.75
  • 1.00
  • 1.25
  • 1.50
  • 1.75
  • 2.00

A former Marine who admitted to killing seven women in a plea deal with Indiana prosecutors has been sentenced to seven life sentences.

Darren Vann was to be tried in October in the strangulation deaths of 19-year-old Afrikka Hardy of Hammond, and 35-year-old Anith Jones of Merrillville. Prosecutors were seeking the death penalty for Vann in their deaths.

In entering the plea deal, Vann was spared a death sentence when he was sentenced Friday.

Authorities say the 47-year-old Vann preyed on women in an area of Gary, known as a hangout for prostitutes and drug users.

Vann was arrested in October 2014 as Hammond police investigated the killing of Hardy, whose body was found in a bathtub inside a Hammond motel room.

Vann, who received an “other than honorable” discharge in 1993, moved to Gary after his July 2013 release from a Texas prison, where he served time on a sexual assault charge involving a prostitute.

Please enable JavaScript to view this content.

{{ articles_remaining }}
Free {{ article_text }} Remaining
{{ articles_remaining }}
Free {{ article_text }} Remaining Article limit resets on
{{ count_down }}