Man gets 72 years in prison for killing grandmother, friend in suburban Seattle

SEATTLE – A man has been sentenced to 72 years in prison for killing his grandmother and a friend of his ex-girlfriend in suburban Seattle.

SeattlePI.com reported Zachary Craven was sentenced Friday in the deaths of 66-year-old Angelika Hayden and 21-year-old Meagan Smith.

On July 7, 2015, Craven went to his grandmother’s house in Skyway even though he had a no-contact order and shot Hayden in the head. He then went to the Renton home of an ex-girlfriend where Smith was staying and shot Smith and the family dog.

A jury found him guilty in May of two counts of murder and assault. The assault charge was for Craven pistol-whipping his grandfather figure, Robert Luxton, while staying with him before the slayings.

Craven’s attorneys claimed the 27-year-old man suffered from a traumatic childhood, drug addiction and mental health issues and had requested a 40-year sentence.