Man Gets Life For 1994 Southern California Killings

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A man who ordered the kidnapping and killing of two Southern California men in 1994 has been sentenced to life in prison without chance of parole.

Howard Bloomgarden was sentenced Friday.

Prosecutors say Bloomgarden ran a drug ring and ordered a hit on Peter Kovach of Redondo Beach, a one-time dealer, after the two had a falling out.

The other man, Ted Gould of Redondo Beach, was killed to eliminate witnesses.

Authorities say the two were abducted from a Torrance telecommunications store where they worked, killed at a Lawndale motel, and their bodies dumped in San Diego.

They were strangled by Kenneth Friedman, who committed suicide on Death Row in 2012.

Three other people are serving time for their roles in the killings.

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