Boyfriend Gets 60 Years In Portage Woman's Murder
(CBS) -- While family and friends searched for his missing girlfriend, Dustin McCowan partied, according to police. Now, he'll be spending 60 years in prison for her murder.
The sentence was handed down Thursday afternoon in Valparaiso, Ind.
McCowan, 20, was apparently jealous in his rocky relationship with Amanda Bach, 19, of Portage. Police found her body close to railroad tracks, about 300 yards from McCowan's home in Wheeler, Ind. in September 2011.
Prosecutors said the bullet in her body matched the ammunition in McCowan's father's gun, which was missing.
Bach's father, William, says the 60-year sentence is not strict enough.
"I guess what we would like is life without parole. I mean, he doesn't deserve to walk the streets," he told reporters.
McCowan's lawyers claimed the police investigation was flawed. They also raised questions about the involvement of other people.
Tensions ran high as the McCowan's father, Elliot, left the Porter County Courthouse. The Crown Point police officer is under investigation, for potentially helping hide evidence in Bach's murder, according to police.
"Everybody has their own opinions," he said.
Said William Bach, "My gut feeling is he had something to do with it, to help him."
