SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — A Springfield, Missouri, man has been found guilty of murdering his neighbor, a retired elementary school janitor.
In a news release, the Greene County prosecutor, Dan Patterson, announced Pavel Samsinak, 48, was convicted of murder in the second degree, armed criminal action, arson in the second degree, and tampering with physical evidence. Samsinak was convicted of the murder of his neighbor, Alice Hale, in September 2020.
According to court documents, police believed an argument over the property line between Samsinak and Hale’s homes led to the deadly altercation, KYTV reported.
During the trial, prosecutors argued Samsinak beat Hale to death with a “dangerous instrument” and then set fire to her house to destroy evidence, watching the fire from a nearby parking lot, The Springfield Business Journal reported.
Evidence at the trial included testimony from Hale’s neighbors, who heard the two arguing, surveillance video from a nearby convenience store and blood in Samsinak’s car, The Springfield News-Leader reported. The jury deliberated for only 45 minutes before finding Samsinak guilty of all charges.
Pavel Samsinak faces a life sentence for the murder conviction. His sentencing is scheduled for May 11, 2022.
Prosecutors told The Springfield News-Leader that before Hale’s murder, Samsinak had a history of run-ins with his neighbors, and was accused in 2013 of showing one neighbor a gun because he “did not like the way they walked.”
©2022 Cox Media Group
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/GRZGPKEIUVHVFAVEGSOJSRA6JQ.jpg)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/63IFXVNTOJAWHCQLA2JEZHS7OU.jpg)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/N6OBX6CWQZAAPOFSXUS4USRK6E.jpeg)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/B62QQBSTIFBZJOQD2O7LFC3UCY.png)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/ZRBUBVWFNJFXJP6ZQG2ANEROVE.png)