Sonia Hughes was strangled to death in the Fall of 2006. Her body was found buried in a shallow grave in Visalia a few months after her disappearance.
16 years later Sonia’s husband, Joseph Allen Hughes, has been sentenced to life in prison for her murder.
In February 2016, a family member with intimate knowledge of what happened in 2006 contacted Visalia
Police Department detectives. In a statement, the family member said they saw and heard Hughes beating his wife the night she supposedly left. They never saw her again and Hughes continued to state that she ran away.
After further investigation, Hughes was arrested and charged for his wife’s murder in October 2017. At the
time of his arrest, Hughes was incarcerated in prison for robbery and felony vandalism.
On November 18, 2022, Hughes was found guilty of second-degree murder.
According to current California sentencing laws, Hughes must serve 15 years before being
considered for parole.
