Convicted priest killer sentenced for wife’s murder

Syracuse (WSYR-TV) – A man who served time in prison for killing a priest in the New York City area in the 1960s is returning to prison after pleading guilty to murdering his wife in the town of Van Buren.

Robert Burger was sentenced to 20 years to life in prison on Tuesday morning. A judge said the sentence will go into effect after his sentence in the priest's killing has concluded.

The judge indicated that Burger will spend the rest of his life in prison.

In December 2011, Burger murdered his wife, Rebecca Dethlefs, in the Village Green apartment they shared.

A maintenance worker discovered her body on New Year’s Eve after neighbors complained about a smell coming from the apartment.

A medical examiner determined the cause of her death to be blunt force trauma to the head.

The Onondaga County Sheriff’s Office arrested him in Middletown.

He was serving life on parole for the priest’s murder. He spent 28 years in prison for the 1964 slaying.