A Bellingham man who killed his estranged wife with a shotgun last summer was called a sociopath by the prosecutor and sentenced to nearly 32 years in prison Monday, June 11.

Keayn Dunya, 39, killed Kriston Peterman-Dunya, as she answered the door of her downtown apartment in the early morning hours July 3. A jury found him guilty of first-degree murder last week.

County Prosecutor Dave McEachran described the level of planning and Dunya's callous, nonchalant manner after the killing as striking features of the case.

Dunya had been staying at the Whidbey Island home of his then-girlfriend, Kara Buchanan, over the July 4th weekend, giving himself an alibi for the time of Peterman-Dunya's murder. But early July 3 he sneaked out of the house and drove Buchanan's car up to Bellingham, where he was captured on video near Peterman-Dunya's Holly Street apartment with what appeared to be a shotgun. He then returned to Whidbey Island and continued on as if nothing had happened.

"Really, what this tells me is he's a sociopath," McEachran said. "And as a sociopath, he has no moral constraint."

A bitter divorce and custody battle over the couple's 7-year-old son, Kai, was the motive behind the killing, McEachran said. At one point, Buchanan had confessed to the killing so Kai wouldn't end up an orphan. Murder charges against her were dropped so she would testify for the prosecution, and she was charged with first-degree rendering criminal assistance for giving Dunya an alibi.

McEachran asked Whatcom County Superior Court Judge Ira Uhrig for the maximum sentence for Dunya, who had no prior criminal history: 31 years and eight months in prison.

"I think society should not have his presence for as long as possible," McEachran said.

Dunya declined to speak at his sentencing and looked stoic as Uhrig read from a letter submitted by Peterman-Dunya's family members.

Uhrig said he couldn't imagine what it will be like for Kai to realize that his father is responsible for his mother's death. Kai is now in the custody of Peterman-Dunya's parents in Missouri. They did not attend the trial or sentencing.

"Keayn has robbed his son Kai of his mother's love for the rest of his life and ensured that Kai will grow up without a father," the judge read from part of the letter written by Kriston's brother, Eric Peterman.