After apologizing for his involvement in the death of a Milford woman, Lawrence Grant of Shipshewana was sentenced this morning to 51/2 years in prison.

Grant, 29, pleaded guilty last month in Kosciusko Circuit Court to assisting a criminal, a Class C felony; unlawful movement of a body, a Class D felony; and auto theft, a Class D felony.

Grant was taken into custody in Florida after going to authorities to report what he knew about the disappearance of Kathy Vroman, 48, of Milford. The missing person case then became a murder investigation and Vroman's body was located in a wooded area near Three Rivers, Mich. Vroman was reported missing on Jan. 15 by her husband, William Vroman, when she failed to return home from work.

Kathy Vroman's boss at Country Car Co. in Milford, 22-year-old Jason Fisher of Millersburg, is awaiting trial charged with her murder. Also charged in connection with the murder case is Fisher's father, Ralph Freddrick "Fred" Fisher, 46, of Goshen, who is charged with conspiracy to obstruct justice, a Class D felony.

Officials have said that Kathy Vroman's death was connected to an auto theft ring in which the Fishers, Grant, William Vroman and George W. Aldrich, 28, of Etna Green, were allegedly involved. The elder Fisher and Aldrich also are awaiting trial and William Vroman recently pleaded guilty to charges of burglary and auto theft.

During the sentencing hearing, William Vroman was allowed to speak as a victim representative and said he wanted Grant to "get what he deserves for what he did." He told the court that he came on behalf of his wife: "Kathy was a very kind person. ... I just can't believe that this actually happened."

Throughout the rest of the hour-long hearing, Vroman, who was in custody and handcuffed, wept from the courtroom galley and became more upset when Grant offered his apologies in court.

"I'd just like to apologize to Bill and Kathy's families," Grant said. "Kathy was my friend. ... I'd just like to say I'm sorry."

Before handing down sentencing, Judge Rex Reed explained to Grant that he weighed both the aggravating and mitigating circumstances of the case and said that they were about equal, with Grant's criminal history on the aggravating side and his cooperation with authorities in this case on the mitigating side.

Reed gave Grant the presumptive terms for each of the charges against him.

The assisting-a-criminal offense was the most serious of the offenses as a Class C felony, and Grant was sentenced to four years in prison for that charge. The two Class D felony charges against Grant brought 1-1/2 years each in prison. Reed ordered that the terms for the two charges related to Kathy Vroman's death be served concurrently with each other and that the term for auto theft be served consecutive to those terms, providing for a total of 5-1/2 years in prison. With credit given for the 134 days already served in custody, Grant could be released from incarceration in about two years.

Kosciusko County Prosecutor Charles Waggoner said he plans to call Grant and all the other defendants as witnesses in the related cases as they go to trial. Jason Fisher is scheduled to be tried on the murder charge in September. Two of the seven days set aside for that matter are solely for jury selection. [[In-content Ad]]