Texas man, 37, who helped murder Kansas couple on orders of a woman who claimed to be part of fictitious 'carnival mafia' is sentenced to life in prison

Rusty Frasier , 37, of Aransas Pass, Texas, was sentenced Friday to life without parole for his role in the 2018 killings of Alfred and Pauline Carpenter 

A Texas man has been sentenced to life in prison for his role in the slayings of a Kansas couple who were killed after a carnival worker ordered their deaths as part of a fictitious carnival mafia.

Rusty Frasier, 37, of Aransas Pass, Texas, was sentenced Friday to life without parole for 50 years on each of two counts of first-degree murder.

He is one of several people charged in the July 2018 deaths of Alfred and Pauline Carpenter, who were working as vendors at the Barton County, Kansas, fair.

Prosecutors said the Carpenters were killed at the fair and their bodies were taken to Arkansas, where they were buried in a national forest near Van Buren, Arkansas.

Barton County District Judge Mike Keeley on Friday also sentenced Christine Tenney, 40, of La Marque, Texas, to 59 months for aggravated robbery and eight months for obstructing apprehension for her role in the deaths.

Michael Fowler Jr, 56, of Sarasota, Florida, was previously sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for 100 years. Thomas D. Drake pleaded guilty to one count of obstructing apprehension last year. 

Investigators said Kimberly Younger, of McIntosh, Florida, posed as a 'carnival mafia' boss and ordered the other suspects to kill the couple as part of an initiation. Police have said the 'carnival mafia' does not exist. 

Prosecutors said the Carpenters , who were in their late 70s, were killed at the Barton County, Kansas, fair and their bodies were taken to Arkansas, where they were buried in a national forest near Van Buren

Investigators said Kimberly Younger posed as a carnival mafia boss and ordered the other suspects to kill the couple. Police have said the 'carnival mafia' does not exist 

Younger, who is accused of leading the plot that led to the deaths of the Carpenters,  has pleaded not guilty to several charges, including capital murder. 

She has been charged with six counts including the capital murder charge - for which she could face life in jail without the possibility of parole, two counts of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, criminal solicitation, and felony theft. 

Assistant Attorney General Jessica Domme said the state will not seek the death  penalty if Younger is found guilty, according to the Great Bend Tribune. 

Younger waived her right to a speedy trial and the court said her trial may be scheduled after May or June of 2021. A case management conference has been set for 1pm on May 6. 

In the July 14, 2018, incident the Carpenters, a couple in their late 70s, were working at the Barton County fair selling crafts, jewelry, purses and other handmade items, when they were killed.    

Christine Tenney was sentenced last week to 59 months for aggravated robbery. Thomas D. Drake pleaded guilty to one count of obstructing apprehension last year. Michael Fowler Jr has been sentenced to life in prison for his role in the killings 

The suspects were also working at the Barton County Fair (pictured in 2019) in Great Bend, Kansas at the time of the slayings 

They were killed by a group of other carnival workers who hatched the plot to kill the the couple to obtain their possessions. 

While posing as a 'carnival mafia member', Younger allegedly sent text messages under the name of Frank Zaitchik ordering a hit on the Carpenters.  

Detectives discovered Younger had a Facebook page in the name of Frank Zaitchik while examining her phone, according to police reports. 

Fowler claimed that Younger ordered for the killing of the couple as a part of an initiation ritual into the cult.  

He told investigators that Frasier stabbed Alfred and Fowler then shot the man dead. 

Fowler then went into the couple's camper and shot Pauline, according to police reports.

Police spokesman Jonathan Wear said in an email that the mafia was 'definitely made up' by Younger. 

'Mafia member' Zaitchik texted others to clean the inside of the camper and to dispose of the bodies, Fowler allegedly told investigators. 

The four suspects loaded the couple's bodies into the camper and dumped them in a creek bed north of Cedarville, Arkansas, according to police reports.  

Last year Assistant Attorney General Jessica Domme said that 'Kimberly Younger had recruited and planned for to kill someone' at Frasier's guilty plea hearing in July. 

Younger later 'determined it would be the Carpenters' and identified the couple as the intended victims of the hit.