(NORWALK, Ohio) - Paul Hicks, who was convicted of murdering his ex-wife, was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison today, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost and Huron County Prosecutor James Sitterly announced.

"Today a killer is held accountable, although 24 years after the crime, it's a stark reminder that truth has no expiration date," Yost said. "Prison bars will now restrain the evil that stole Regina from her loved ones."

Hicks, 50, was convicted on Dec. 19 of three counts of murder and one count of kidnapping after a two-week jury trial.

According to witnesses, on Thursday, Oct. 18, 2001, at approximately 8 p.m., Regina Rowe Hicks, 25, left her boyfriend's residence in her white Chevrolet Camaro to pick up her son, but she never arrived. The car was found the following Monday, Oct. 22, in a pond at Section Line Road 30 in Willard, her body inside.

The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation investigated the case at the request of and with the assistance of the Huron County Sheriff's Office. The case was prosecuted by the Attorney General's Special Prosecutions Section and the Huron County Prosecutor's Office.

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