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Ramona

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A tearful Poway man was sentenced Tuesday to 40 years to life in state prison for killing his ex-girlfriend and her 5-year-old son and burying them in Ramona.

Thomas Curby Henderson, 33, was sentenced by San Diego Superior Court Judge J. Richard Haden after the slain woman’s mother and ex-husband urged that Henderson receive the maximum punishment.

Henderson pleaded guilty Oct. 9 to the second-degree murder of Deborah Cooney, 32, of Ramona, and the first-degree murder of David Cooney, 5.

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Haden imposed 25 years to life for the boy’s bludgeoning and a consecutive term of 15 years to life for the strangulation of his mother. The murders were believed to have been committed April 9, and the bodies were discovered Sept. 9 on water district property in Ramona.

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