Eric Holland.Photo: Clark County, Nev., Detention Center/AP/Shutterstock
A man who was arrested in Las Vegas after police found a severed head and body parts in his stolen truck last year has been sentenced to up to 45 years in prison.
Clark County District Judge Tierra Jones sentenced Eric John Holland, 58, to aminimum of 18 yearsand a maximum of 45 for second-degree murder and felony theft, according to the Associated Press. He pleaded guilty for a reduced charge in July.
Holland’s attorneys have not yet responded to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
He also said that after the incident, he “couldn’t move” Miller because he was 6'4 and 250 lbs, which is why he used a saw, coolers and a trash bag to attempt burying him.
He echoed the same sentiments in court, according to AP, saying he was “truly remorseful” about what happened.
“It’s a terrible thing that happened, and I’m just so sorry,” Holland said, adding that he hopes authorities will continue to investigate his motive for the killing.
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“I was going to bring it up in court, but I’m not going to because of family members,” Holland said. “There was a reason, and I hope that they’ll get closure today.”
Holland told theLas Vegas Review-Journalin a recent jailhouse interview that he believed Miller killed his own ex-wife Jing Mei Zhu, to whom Miller was briefly married in 2018. He divorced her less than a year later, when he alleged in court that she left him and moved to China.
“I can tell you that Ericbelieves that she is dead and Richard killed her,” his attorney, David Westbrook told theReview-Journalahead of sentencing. “He believes that very strongly.”
According to the outlet, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department has no open missing person’s case for Zhu.
Meanwhile, Miller’s daughter Amanda Dawn Potter told theReview-Journalthat she’s aware of Holland’s claims, adding: “I don’t really trust anything that comes out of that guy’s mouth.”
“I don’t know how to make sense of it,” Potter said. “My dad didn’t deserve this.”
source: people.com
