'Alien Cult Murder' case: Woman gets 15-40 years for shooting boyfriend

STROUDSBURG, Pa. (WNEP) -- The final chapter of a woman's trial involving murder, aliens, and an online cult ended Monday in Monroe County Court.

Barbara Rogers was sentenced to 15 to 40 years behind bars for the murder of her boyfriend Steven Mineo in 2017.

A jury found Rogers guilty in March of the third-degree murder of her boyfriend Steven Mineo. He was shot in the head at the couple's apartment in July 2017.

"You go back to the scene and you have the victim with a gunshot wound, point blank to the middle of his forehead, so close that there's burns around the wound, there's the star pattern in his forehead," said Monroe County Assistant District Attorney Andrew Kroeckel. "Who knows what could happen in 15 years from now when she gets out? Who knows what could happen when she's in state prison? So we would have liked to see her get more, but we understand why she did what she did."

Rogers says she wasn't responsible for the killing. She said Steven made her do it by putting her hands on the gun and telling her to pull the trigger.

She claims he was upset because of problems with the cult both were members of, called "Sherry Shriner," which centered on aliens and the end of the world.

Prosecutors asked the judge for the maximum sentence of 20 to 40 years.

The defense asked for leniency because Rogers is a mother of three with no prior criminal record and military service.