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"Horrible" Wisconsin Man Gets Life in Prison for Killing Ex’s Lover, Father Of Two
“What you did was frightening,” Judge Bruce Schroeder told 42-year-old Zachariah Anderson, referring to Rosalio “Pocho” Gutierrez Jr.'s 2020 killing.
A Wisconsin man who became “obsessed” with his ex-girlfriend and later killed her new romantic partner, will spend the rest of his life behind bars, according to reports.
Zachariah Anderson, 42, was handed a life sentence in a Kenosha courtroom on Tuesday for the 2020 intentional murder of Rosalio “Pocho” Gutierrez Jr. He was convicted in March. Anderson was also dealt an additional eight years in prison on charges of hiding a corpse, and for two counts of stalking, which had involved his former girlfriend, Sadie Beacham, as well.
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Anderson will be eligible for parole in 40 years, per the court’s ruling. He received credit for 1,092 days he spent incarcerated during trial proceedings, according to Law & Crime.
Gutierrez, 40, was first reported missing on May 19, 2020, according to the Kenosha News. At the time, police found a patio door open at his home with blood trails throughout the property.
Months earlier, Beacham broke up with Anderson, her longtime boyfriend. The couple shared three children together. Beacham and Gutierrez later met online.
Investigators later discovered a burn pit at Anderson’s home, along with damaged clothes and a bottle of bleach. Gutierrez's blood was later found in Anderson’s Dodge minivan, which also smelled of bleach, according to authorities. DNA further implicated Anderson in Gutierrez’s slaying.
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Gutierrez’s body was never found. The Kenosha man’s family hasn’t heard from him in more than 1,000 days. Prosecutors say Anderson was motivated to kill Gutierrez out of jealousy.
At Anderson’s sentencing, the case’s judge directly admonished Anderson, who had maintained throughout trial he was innocent of his former girlfriend’s new lover’s killing.
“What you did was frightening,” Judge Bruce Schroeder said. “Horrible. And you can wag your head all you want. The jury found beyond a reasonable doubt that you did it. And so — the loss of these people is beyond measure.”
Gutierrez was a lifelong resident of Kenosha and a father of two children, according to his obituary. He obtained criminal justice and sociology degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Parkside and later went on to work at the State Public Defender’s office. His family described him as a “good son” and a “mama’s boy,” who was “full of life.”
“My son was a kind and compassionate man,” Gutierrez’s mother, Selia Patterson said.
“He was very loving to his family, to his children and to his friends. He was someone that a friend would call and ask for something and he would drop what he was doing and help out. He was such a good son, he really was. We were there for one another. I was there for him all the time. My love for him was unconditional and he knew what unconditional love was because I laid that for him.”
At trial, his mother voiced hope that one day her son’s remains would be found and returned to his family. A reward is currently being offered by Gutierrez’s family for any information leading to his remains.
“I’m hopeful still that someone out there will find him,” Patterson added. “I’m hopeful something will be found. At this point I’m anticipating pieces. You know, I’m anticipating that maybe someone will find a piece of bone or something. If it looks odd, look.”
Anderson’s defense attorney, Nicole A. Muller, is expected to appeal the conviction on Anderson’s behalf, People previously reported.
