Man gets 76 years for beating of US Parks Service employee

BISBEE, Ariz. – A man convicted of attempted murder and other crimes in the beating of a National Park Service worker in southern Arizona has been sentenced to 76 years in prison.

Authorities say Gil Gaxiola was sentenced Monday in Cochise County Superior Court on convictions stemming from the August 2013 beating of a worker at Chiricahua National Monument.

The victim was found unconscious in a bathroom near the Faraway Ranch Trailhead suffering from head trauma.

Gaxiola was convicted of attempted first-degree murder, armed robbery, aggravated assault, kidnapping and theft of means of transportation.

Authorities say Gaxiola used a large rock to injure Karen Gonzales, who was airlifted to a Tucson hospital for treatment after the assault.

Gonzales’ work vehicle was taken from the scene by the suspect and later recovered in Douglas.