UNICOI COUNTY, Tenn. (WJHL) — Tyler Owens, a Unicoi County man convicted of the 2022 murder of Stacie Brugger, was sentenced to life in prison followed by five years on Thursday.

Owens was convicted by a jury back in April of first-degree murder, abuse of a corpse, felony reckless endangerment, tampering with evidence and other charges.

In February 2022, Owens shot and killed his girlfriend, Stacie Brugger.

“We know that he’s going to die in prison like he’s never going to see the light of day for what he did and although that doesn’t bring her back, that’s enough for us to finally just kind of walk away from here today with our heads held high and open page one of the new chapter of Stacy’s story,” said Marissa Brugger, Stacie Brugger’s sister.

Friends and family members of Brugger gave statements at Owens’ sentencing hearing on Thursday.

Olivia Sanders met Stacie Brugger in middle school and says they stayed friends for years after. Sanders came from Lexington, Kentucky, to be at the hearing.

“She was just very compassionate, and she would have been here for me if the roles had been reversed,” Spencer said. “It was nice to be able to confront him and tell him about himself and how small and weak and gross he is. That felt good.”

Owens himself made a statement during the sentencing, saying he apologized for what happened back in February.

“I can say this, I’m sorry,” Owens said. “I don’t expect you to accept that. I don’t expect you to ever, ever forgive anything that has happened. But I do want you to know that I do think about y’all, and I do think about the pain that this is causing y’all.”

Dennis Brooks is the Prosecutor for the case. He said Owens would be in his early 80s by the time he would be eligible for parole.

“The thing that stands out about this case is the love people have for Stacy Brugger,” Brooks said. “That speaks volumes of the kind of person Stacy Brugger was and could have continued to be and it’s been an honor to prosecute this case on her behalf.”

This story is currently developing. Stay tuned on-air and online for updates.