It took a Dallas jury less than seven minutes to convict a 37-year-old man of abducting, raping and murdering 18-year-old Zoe Hasting in October 2015.
According to Dallas News, Antonio Cochran will be eligible for parole in 30 years, Hasting’s father testified in court Monday (Jan. 22) that he hoped Cochran received a life sentence.
“I believe if he gets out of prison, he’s going to do the same thing to somebody else. I’d hate that my daughter died and he goes and does it to somebody else,” Jim Hasting’s said.
Before heading to church on Oct. 11, 2015, Zoe stopped at a local Walgreens to return a Redbox movie. Her parents began to worry when she didn’t show up for Sunday dinner at their home. They started looking for her and were able to locate her using a phone tracking app.
“We drove over that bridge where she was at least three times not knowing she was there,” Jim Hastings said. “At that point, we didn’t know what happened to her, but we knew it was bad.”
By the time the Hasting’s family found their daughter, police already arrived. Jim Hasting recalled a cop holding him back.
“Don’t go over there and look at your daughter. You won’t be able to forget what you see.” Heeding the officer’s advice the family still hasn’t seen evidence from the crime scene where their daughter’s body was found.
Prosecutor Pat Kirlin said Cochran showed Zoe no mercy when he assaulted her and then slit her throat several times. Cochran’s sister, a family friend and a pastor described him as a good man with some “mental problems.” Witnesses however said Cochran merited the nickname “Chester The Molester” for being caught having sex with his ex-girlfriend’s 17-year-old daughter.
After trial, Jim Hastings spoke with reporters about how the family and Zoe’s brothers and sisters are coping.
“I did everything I could to protect that girl as she grew up,” Jim Hastings said. “She goes across the street from our house and comes across someone like Antonio Cochran.”