EVANSVILLE, IN (WFIE) -
A guilty verdict just came down in the murder trial of the Illinois teen.
Pharaoh Newton, 18, has now been found guilty of beating and stabbing 79-year-old Frances Wolf last October.
The jury got the case this afternoon, and our reporter on scene says Newton has just been found guilty.
The court room was filled with bags of evidence in what prosecutors called a clear-cut case and jurors seemed to think so as well, coming back with a verdict in only around 20 minutes. A verdict the victim's family was waiting for.
"She was a very loving, caring person, she loved gardening, loved to play bridge. She was just really well liked, nobody had a bad word to say about her," says Wolf's nephew Don Higdon.
Wolf's family walked out of the court house Friday with a verdict while remembering their loved one.
"We really miss her, she is missed by a lot of people it's really hard over the holidays when she's not there," Higdon says.
Wolf's charred out minivan was found miles away in Union County, Kentucky.
A bag containing a blood covered knife, bloody gloves and clothes was found in the home of Pharaoh Newton.
Newton's father was staying in Wolf's basement at the time of the murder and witnesses say Pharaoh answered Wolf's home phone hours before the attack.
Prosecutors say DNA evidence linked Pharaoh to the crime.
"I think this was a very important verdict, we had an elderly women who was well liked who contributed to the community, helped homeless people and we have a young person who obviously had gone wrong, he had gotten in trouble in IL and he came over here and he savagely and brutally murdered her," said Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Bob Zoss.
Prosecutors say they believe the motive was financial.
Wolf owned several antique shops and was selling her home. She was rumored to have a lot of money, which later proved untrue.
Prosecutors called witnesses that say Newton confessed he planned to rob Wolf, but got scared and stabbed her.
"Then there didn't seem to be any remorse, afterward he took checks from her and forged those, for being 17 now 18 he's has really hardened and it's sad to see," says Zoss.
The family says the verdict is bittersweet, but does make them feel like justice has been served.
A sentencing date has been set for September 6th at 2:00 p.m.
Newton faces up to 65 years in prison.
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