Steven Rebert

Steven Rebert, the former Oakfield resident convicted of killing a married couple in Pennsylvania and a suspect in the murder of Bill Fickel in 2005, will spend the rest of his life in prison, a Jefferson County jury decided after four hours of deliberation.

The jury could have sentenced Rebert to death -- which in Pennsylvannia currently would be 23 hours a day in solitary confinement for the rest of his life -- but instead said Rebert should receive four consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole.

Rebert was convicted of two counts each of first- and second-degree murder and aggravated assault, theft, burglary and robbery.

Rebert reportedly told a Jefferson County television news reporter that he plans to appeal his conviction.

Genesee County DA Lawrence Friedman is expected to make a decision soon on whether to prosecute Rebert for Fickel's murder.

Rebert is also a person of interest in the unsolved murder of an Orleans County man, Kevin Smith.

Chief Deputy Jerome Brewster has long sought the identity of a witness who may have been at the scene the night Fickel was murdered, but even with a $100,000 reward, no such witness has yet come forward.

Brewster said last week, however, that there is sufficient evidence, even without the witness, for the DA's office to consider a murder charge against Rebert.

As a jury deliberates the fate of former Oakfield resident Steven Rebert -- life in prison or the death penalty for killing a Pennsylvania couple -- Chief Deputy Jerome Brewster is hoping one more piece of evidence will emerge to help authorities convict Rebert of killing Bill Fickel in August 2005.

"If in fact there were people out there who were afraid of him, they now know that he's either going to spend life in prison or get the death penalty," Brewster said. "He's no longer a threat to them."

Brewster has believed throughout the investigation that there was a passenger in the truck being driven by the man who shot Fickel.

If Rebert is the killer, that person may be the key to solving the case.

A cigarette butt gathered as evidence at the scene of the shooting, Brewster said, was found to have Rebert's DNA on it.

"We've been about where we have been with the case," Brewster said. "We were sort of waiting to see if the trial (in Pennsylvannia) might yield us anything else on Mr. Rebert, and at this point it doesn't look like it will. We're proceeding with what we have and we'll be meeting with the DA in the near future to see if we can get going with what we have."

Investigators are always hoping for new evidence to make a case stronger, Brewster said, and eyewitness testimony would certainly help formulate a case against Fickel's killer.

"We're hoping somebody will come forward in the next couple of weeks who decides to cooperate and then our case will be much stronger," Brewster said.

He added, "and, of course, there's still that $100,000 reward out there."

Meanwhile, the jury that convicted Rebert of killing Wayne and Vicky Shugar on April 10 is hearing testimony from people affected by the case, from members of the Shugar family to Rebert's mother and father.

(Updated version at 1:25 p.m.)

A man suspected of killing two people in Brockway, Pa., has been identified by Sheriff Gary Maha as a "person of interest" in the Nov. 10, 2005 slaying of Oakfield resident Bill Fickel.

The Fickel murder has gone unsolved for five years.

Steven Patrick Rebert, 45, 422 N. Broad St., Emporium, Pa. knew Fickel, according to Maha. At one time, Rebert was a resident of East Shelby Road, Oakfield.

The Sheriff's Office arrested Rebert June 3 in the Town of Alabama on a criminal possession of a weapon charge. He was allegedly carrying a switchblade knife.

Rebert was reportedly in Genesee County visiting relatives at the time.

A Pennsylvania radio station reported that Rebert was in New York when arrested for the alleged double homicide in Brockway. It's unclear if that would have been the June 3 arrest or a subsequent arrest.

The murder of Wayne and Vicky Shugar of Brockway occurred April 12. Vicky Shugar was a flower shop owner and Rebert reportedly came to know the couple while involved with an employee of the store. Pennsylvannia police say they have not identified a motive for the killings. For more on the Shugar murders, click here.

Media reports are also tying Rebert to the unsolved murder of Kevin Smith in Orleans County.

Bill Fickel, who was 46 at the time of his death, was shot and killed outside his home on Burns Road, Oakfield. No suspect has ever been previously identified.

A possible one-time residence of Rebert, on East Shelby Road, is not far from the murder scene. The two roads intersect (see map below).

There may have been evidence found in Rebert's home that has led law enforcement to consider him a suspect in the unsolved murders in Genesee and Orleans counties.

DNA evidence has reportedly tied Rebert to the Shugar murders. DNA from Wayne Shugar was reportedly found on one of Rebert's work boots. The Shugars were found shot to death in the basement of their home. There are also reports that Rebert had previously been seen in the area of the Shugar's home as much as a month before the murder.

There is also DNA evidence in the Fickel murder. Three days ago, Chief Deputy Jerome Brewster told The Batavian that the Sheriff's Office is continually looking for a DNA match.

Asked about a possible suspect being identified, Brewster would say only that  recent leads "take us in a direction we want to go."

Lisa Fickel, who is not available for comment this morning, also said she was "hopeful" about recent developments in the case.

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