TACOMA – The Massachusetts convict who killed a couple near Graham pleaded guilty in Tacoma to aggravated murder and was sentenced to life in prison without parole.

The sentence Friday for 41-year-old Daniel Tavares was the only one possible after the Pierce County prosecutor agreed not to seek the death penalty.

Tavares killed his neighbors, Brian and Beverly Mauck, in November in a dispute over $50.

Tavares had been released in July from prison in Massachusetts after serving 15 years for manslaughter in the stabbing death of his mother. He moved to Washington to marry a prison pen pal.

Superior Court Judge Vicki Hogan imposed the sentence after hearing relatives of the Maucks describe their loss.