Witruke Sentenced to 20 Years in Prison in Connection to 2015 Double Homicide

Allen Witruke

MAYVILLE – Chautauqua County District Attorney Patrick Swanson announced Tuesday that  Allen P. Witruke, 53, of Jamestown, was sentenced to concurrent 20 year sentences for each of the two counts of Manslaughter in the 1^st Degree.  He will also have five years of supervised released.

In May, Witruke entered a plea of guilty to two (2) counts of Manslaughter in the 1^st Degree in front of Acting County Court Judge James Bargnesi. Bargnesi handed the sentence to Witruke following the guilty plea.

Swanson said, “Today, with the family Eric Washburn and Catherine Witruke present, closure in the matter came in the form of concurrent 20 year sentences.”

“First and foremost, I want to thank the Jamestown Police Department, Olean Police Department and the Chautauqua County Forensic Investigation Team for their outstanding work on this case,” Swanson said.  “The amount of investigation and hard work that goes into prosecuting murder cases is astronomical and each and every officer involved in this case needs to be commended.”

On December 8, 2015, around 8 a.m., deputies of the Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Department Civil Division entered the defendant’s home at 235 Barrows St. in the City of Jamestown to execute an eviction and discovered the bodies of Catherine Witruke and Eric Washburn. Allen Witruke had beaten and stabbed Washburn to death and stabbed Catherine to death.  He then fled to Olean where other members of his family lived before being located by Olean Police officers.

“This case was tragic and heartbreaking.  As with any domestic based homicide, families are ripped apart and left devastated.” Swanson said, “We’re happy with the outcome and satisfied that the defendant accepted responsibility for his actions.  Hopefully the family members of the victims can begin the healing process.”