DA: Man paid to kill to be released from Corcoran prison

VISALIA, Calif. ( KSEE/KGPE ) – An 87-year-old man serving a life sentence after being convicted of two counts of murder and one count of conspiracy to commit murder was granted parole on Tuesday, June 25, according to the Tulare County District Attorney’s Office.

Almost 50 years ago, the DA’s office says Henry Borbon was paid $1,000 by Joe Perez to assist with the murder of his wife, Rosie Sanchez, and her lover, Richard Gaither.

Prosecutors say on February 28, 1975, under the guise of a drug transaction, the pair drove the victims to Yokohl Drive near Exeter. After stopping on the side of the road, Borbon shot Gaither twice in the back of the head while Perez bludgeoned Sanchez, the mother of his children, with a hammer.

The DA’s office says the blows were not fatal, however, they did lead Borbon to stab Sanchez several times in the chest. Her body was discovered several days later floating in the Kings River near Stratford.

Borbon is currently incarcerated at the California Substance Abuse Facility in Corcoran and awaiting release. The parole hearing on June 25 was Borbon’s 20th parole hearing.

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