A woman convicted of killing her mother and dumping her body was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison, a judge said Friday as her family, who still want answers, looked on.
A jury found Ghazal Mansury guilty of first-degree murder in the death of her 79-year-old mother in January. The body was found days later near the Barona Indian Reservation.
The Serra Mesa woman had admitted to disposing of her mother Mehria Mansury's body in a remote area, but she pleaded not guilty to killing her.
A dozen family members were inside the courtroom during the emotional sentencing.
"We know it happened, we know who did it, we know all the story," said Mehria's niece Homaira S. Rassoul. "It's just for her to fess up, as they say, will be the last stitch to put in the wound and close it. The scar will always be there."
Rassoul spoke to her cousin Ghazal in court, saying the family just wants answers as to why she killed her mother. She said Mehria's sisters are in serious grieving, some now suffering from depression.
Ghazal, who declined the chance to speak before the court, did get a little emotional as she listened to her cousin, but the judge said she has shown no sign of remorse. For that, he gave her no probation.
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Mehria was last seen alive on Sept. 23, 2013 by other family members. Mansury told relatives her mother went on a walk and never returned, which prompted a missing person search throughout the area.
On Oct. 2, 2013, investigators discovered Mehria's dead body under a tree near the Barona Indian Reservation. The next day, Mansury was arrested for her mother's murder.
Prosecutors say on Mansury's computer, they found online search terms like "homicide" and "how to clean blood stains."
Mansury claims she opened a door and knocked her mother over, and when she asked if she was OK, her mother replied, "Yes," according to the defendant. When Mansury returned, she says she found her mother dead, so she put her body in the trunk and dumped her elsewhere.
A witness who testified at trial told the jury Mansury had strangeld her mother with a bicycle inner-tube. Others said Mansury had a long-standing animosity toward Mehria. The tipping point allegedly came when a dog was taken away from her.
"There was a documented history of a relationship that had broken down. We knew that the drugs played a part. We knew that Ms. Mansury's choice of friends played a part," said Deputy District Attorney Paul Greenwood. "But more than that, Ms. Mansury unfortunately did not like her mother. That was very clear."
Investigators do not have a cause of death because Mehria's body was exposed to the elements and wild animals, prosecutors say.
