Still proclaiming his innocence, a Scott man was sentenced to life behind bars yesterday for killing his wife.

Henry Lanz, 42, was found guilty of first-degree murder in September in a case that rested heavily on the testimony of his friend and co-conspirator Karl Laughlin.

Mr. Laughlin, 50, of Clairton, testified for the prosecution in exchange for not being charged as an accomplice. He pleaded guilty to arson and theft for stealing Paula Lanz's minivan and driving it -- with her corpse inside -- to Nashville, Tenn., where he burned both the van and body.

Calling the crime "grotesque," Common Pleas Judge Jeffrey A. Manning nonetheless sentenced Mr. Laughlin to 2 1/2 to five years in prison, saying his aid to prosecutors was a significant factor in his light sentence.

With credit for time served, Mr. Laughlin could be eligible for release next fall.

"Based on [Mr. Laughlin's] testimony alone is how I was found guilty," Mr. Lanz said at the sentencing hearing. "He was lying. It's not true. I didn't kill my wife."

Mr. Laughlin testified that Mr. Lanz shot Ms. Lanz, 39, after an argument in their home, while their two young children were upstairs. He said Mr. Lanz threatened to kill him unless he drove the body out of state and disposed of it.

On the run from the law himself from an outstanding warrant, Mr. Laughlin agreed, he said, out of fear. He was arrested as he hitchhiked his way home from Nashville.

Before his sentence was announced, Mr. Laughlin turned around to apologize to Ms. Lanz's family.

"I'm very sorry for what I did," he said. "I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me."

Ms. Lanz's mother, Carol Lockhart, 70, of Bridgeville, said she wished Mr. Laughlin had received a harsher sentence.

"Sorry don't mean much to me," Ms. Lockhart said. "It won't get her back."