Naman Shrestha
In August 1993, 12-year-old Sara Anne Wood disappeared in Sauquoit, New York, leading the authorities and her loved ones to launch an extensive search for her. It turned out that Lewis Lent had abducted and sexually assaulted her before killing her. Apart from this gruesome crime, he was also responsible for a few other child murders. The episode titled ‘The Unending Search for Sara Anne Wood’ of CBS’ ’48 Hours’ chronicles the crimes of the child serial killer and how he was brought to justice.
Lewis Lent Originally Hailed From New York But Moved Several Times
Lewis Stephen Lent Jr. hailed from the hamlet of Reynoldsville in the town of Hector in Schuyler County, New York. Not much is known about his familial background and early days, but we do know that he was a student at Watkins Glen High School. However, he most likely didn’t even finish grade 10 and dropped out sometime in 1967. He left upstate New York soon and relocated to Florida, particularly in DeLand, Volusia County, to start a new life. He called the Athens of Florida his home for many years, on and off, till 1983. While he held multiple jobs over the years, authorities later revealed that the tracing of the same remained shady. In June 1976, Lewis found himself in legal waters in Truth or Consequences, an art-centric tourist town in New Mexico, while working a job in the tire delivery business.
According to reports, Lewis was likely supposed to deliver some tires to a location after collecting them from an auto supply store. When the tires didn’t reach the intended spot, the police were informed, and he was arrested on charges of embezzlement. Subsequently, Lewis agreed to settle the delivery expenses, and the charges were eventually dropped. Nevertheless, the police began an investigation into his exact purpose of being in the town, which is about 115 miles from the Mexican border. Reports from officers of the multi-agency task force also suggest he was spotted in Pennsylvania and Virginia at one point in time, but the nature of his job remains unclear as of writing.
Lewis Lent Was Fired From His Final Job at a Theatre in Pittsfield
By the time the 1980s rolled around, Lewis Lent had been living in Pittsfield in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, where he had secured employment as a janitor at a local theater. The authorities highlighted that since he maintained cordial relations with his colleagues, they often filled in for him at work. He was a man of faith and served as an ordained minister with the Church of Christ. While many of the locals saw him as a cheerful guy who was always ready to lend a helping hand to the community, some reportedly saw a side of him they didn’t like.
After working at the theater for around seven years, he was reportedly fired in November 1993 after being accused of threatening the cinema hall’s manager and his loved ones. Not just that, as per reports, Lewis also lost his cool with his neighbor at one instance by bringing a baseball bat to his doorstep when the latter’s German shepherd was allegedly causing fear among the kids in the neighborhood. He also moved to North Adams, per reports, where he mostly lived under the criminal radar.
A Failed Abduction Led to the Arrest of Lewis Lent
Around 7 am on January 7, 1994, Lewis Lent reportedly tried to abduct 12-year-old Rebecca “Becky” Savarese in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, while she was on her way to school. He pointed a gun at her and instructed her to get into his truck. Instead of obeying his orders, she faked an asthma attack and managed to free herself from him by letting go of her backpack, which Lewis was dragging to get hold of her. Since it was a crowded area, one of the witnesses saw him getting into his vehicle and noted three digits from his license plate. He reported the same to the police, who began looking for the vehicle and its owner.
The authorities located the truck with those three digits parked in the driveway of a residence. When they knocked on the door, the homeowner claimed that Lewis had borrowed the truck. Upon questioning him, he initially denied knowing about the attempted kidnapping. However, the detectives found Becky’s backpack, a loaded revolver, duct tape, a knife, candy, and a pair of children’s sunglasses during the search of the vehicle. Confronted with these pieces of evidence, Lewis ended up admitting that he tried to kidnap Becky after all, for which he was arrested and charged.
Since a 12-year-old girl named Sara Anne Wood had disappeared just five months prior, the authorities also questioned him about it. Several hours of interrogation later, he not only confessed to the kidnapping and murder of Sara, but also that of James “Jimmy” Bernardo. Furthermore, he also told the detectives how he had built a wooden partition in his bedroom to keep his abducted victims out of sight and locked. Following his confession, he lied to them about the burial site of Sara. On January 10, 1994, he was officially arraigned on charges of kidnapping, armed robbery, and assault with a deadly weapon in connection with Becky’s attempted abduction. The following month, on Valentine’s Day, he was officially indicted for Jimmy’s murder.
Lewis Lent is Serving His Sentence at a Massachusetts Prison Facility Today
On January 7, 1995, Lewis Lent was found guilty of Becky Savarese’s attempted kidnapping and sentenced to 17 to 20 years in prison. With his trial for Jimmy’s murder looming, he pleaded guilty on June 3, 1996, and received a life imprisonment sentence without the possibility of parole. A few months later, on October 16, he was supposed to plead guilty but ended up changing his mind and pleading not guilty to the murder of Sara. Nine days later, Lewis changed his mind again and pleaded guilty on October 25. Lewis Lent’s sentencing hearing took place on April 11, 1997.
After Sara’s family members were done giving victim impact statements, he was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison for the kidnapping and murder of Sara in August 1993. Following his sentencing, the detectives continued visiting him in prison, hoping that he would reveal the true burial site of Sara or confess to other murders. In July 2013, he also confessed to killing Jamie Lusher, claiming that he buried his remains in Greenwater Pond in Becket, Massachusetts. Not only did the search turn out to be a failure, but he also recanted his confession. Currently, Lewis Lent is incarcerated at Old Colony Correctional Center in Bridgewater, Massachusetts.
Read More: Khalil Wheeler-Weaver: Where is the Tagged Serial Killer Now?
