A Pennsylvania man who stabbed, beat, and then set fire to his own grandmother has been sentenced to up to six decades in prison for the gruesome killing.
George Sisco, 29, pleaded guilty but mentally ill to third-degree murder, arson, and making terroristic threats in connection with the April 2024 slaying of 67-year-old Margie Finlay in Milford Township, roughly 40 miles outside Philadelphia.
On the morning of April 26, 2024, emergency crews rushed to Finlay’s home after reports of a fire. When they arrived, they were met with a disturbing scene: Sisco stood outside, covered in blood. When asked if he needed help, he reportedly ignored responders and wandered back into the burning house—threatening anyone who tried to follow.
“She was the devil and I had to do it,” Sisco later told investigators.
Firefighters eventually managed to put out the flames and found Finlay’s body in the kitchen. According to prosecutors, Sisco admitted to killing her, claiming she had been putting dangerous flea medication on the cat and that “the Bible said to use the holy spirit and fire” to defeat the devil.
The Pocono Record reported that Sisco slashed her throat, stabbed her multiple times, and then set her body on fire with a kitchen rag. An autopsy revealed that Finlay died from a combination of blunt force trauma and stab wounds.
Sisco, who had been diagnosed with schizophrenia, was initially declared mentally unfit to stand trial. However, a follow-up evaluation found him competent.
In court, Finlay’s son mourned the loss of a beloved mother and denounced Sisco as a “monster.” His defense attorney argued that Sisco’s mental health spiraled after he stopped taking his medication.
“There are no winners here,” said Pike County District Attorney Ray Tonkin. “The loved ones of Margie Finlay deeply grieve their loss, and that can never be fully repaired.”
Sisco will now serve a sentence of 29 and a half to 60 years behind bars.
Death penalty! He killed his own grandmother. Why pay for food & clothing for life on the tax payers. He’ll only get out later on and kill someone else!