RICHARD WALKER / RWALKER@STARBULLETIN.COM Keith Murauskas was sentenced yesterday to serve at least 30 years of five life terms for the murder of Paul Salazar and for plotting to murder Virginia Salazar.

Killer of taxicab
owner to serve at
least 30 years

The defendant was on parole
when he committed the murder

---

By Leila Fujimori
lfujimori@starbulletin.com

Keith Murauskas will serve at least 30 years of five life terms after a state judge sentenced him yesterday in the brutal sledgehammer bludgeoning and kidnapping of 33-year-old taxicab owner Paul Salazar and attempted murder of Salazar's wife.

Circuit Judge Dexter Del Rosario handed down the sentence of life without the possibility of parole for Salazar's murder and the plot to kill Virginia Salazar in April 1999. The judge also gave Murauskas, 46, life with parole for the kidnapping. Those terms will run together, for which he must serve a minimum of 20 years.

The judge ordered yesterday's sentence to run back to back with the three life terms for 1980-81 multiple bank robberies for which he was convicted in 1983. Because his parole was revoked, Murauskas must serve the remaining balance of about 10 years.

"I hope he never gets out, because he's extremely dangerous," Deputy Prosecutor Chris Van Marter said. "He's basically a sociopath and has been committing crimes most of his adult life."

Van Marter explained that once Murauskas serves the minimum 20 years, the governor can commute the sentence to life with parole.

Murauskas was on parole when he committed the crimes in 1999.

Murauskas and Edward Wallace Martin broke into Paul Salazar's Magellan Avenue apartment to steal the contents of a safe. The two had rented taxis from Salazar.

Murauskas repeatedly bashed Salazar in the head with a sledgehammer, then stabbed him with a hunting knife in the back and neck, according to Martin. The men also planned to kill Salazar's wife, but she did not came home from work.

Martin admitted to also striking Salazar with the sledgehammer. In exchange for his testimony, Martin escaped a life term without parole. He was sentenced in February to life with the possibility of parole for second-degree murder and kidnapping.

Sentencing had been delayed twice this week, once because of an angry response by the brother of Paul Salazar to something Murauskas said, and again after Murauskas attacked a sheriff.

Murauskas wore handcuffs and a Band-Aid yesterday for a gash to his forehead, which he sustained while being subdued after grabbing the shirt of a sheriff who was leading him to the cellblock during a recess in Thursday's sentencing proceedings.

Virginia Salazar sat quietly in the courtroom wearing dark glasses during the sentencing and later declined to comment.