Neighbor Found Guilty for Finding Toddler Cuddling and Trying to Play with Slain Parents as They Lay Dead

A Georgia man has been sentenced for the murder of a firefighter and his wife while their toddler slept upstairs.

Justin and Amber Hicks were discovered dead in their Acworth, Georgia home in November 2021. The couple's neighbor, Matthew Scott Lanz, was arrested on multiple charges, including murder, according to a criminal warrant reviewed by PEOPLE. Lanz was found guilty on all counts during a bench trial, according to court documents.

The warrant states that on November 17, 2021, Lanz entered the Hicks' home through a rear door and shot the couple. He was reportedly unaware that their 2-year-old son was asleep upstairs. The child was unharmed.

During the trial, Justin Hicks' father testified that he went to the home after Amber missed work and the couple did not respond to messages. Police officers who arrived found the toddler attempting to wake his parents and covered in blood, according to bodycam footage cited by 11 Alive. The child had not been changed since the attack.

No clear motive was established at trial. Lanz allegedly told police he had seen "demonic lights" in the home and mentioned that his late brother, Austin, had previous conflicts with former residents of the property. Austin had previously broken into the home and, months before the Hicks' murders, died by suicide after fatally stabbing a police officer in Washington, D.C.

Lanzs defense argued that he was not connected to any physical evidence at the scene. Despite this, he was convicted of two counts of malice murder, four counts of felony murder, two counts of aggravated assault, one count of child cruelty, and one count of tampering with evidence.

Lanz was sentenced to three consecutive life terms, including two without parole, plus an additional 32 years in prison.

Author: Sophia Brooks