It took investigators two decades to solve the cold-case murder of a mother attacked inside her Montgomery County, Maryland, home in May 2001.
Family members of the murder victim, Leslie Preer, shouted, “Yes,” inside the courtroom Thursday as the 30-year sentence was handed down.
A judge sentenced now 45-year-old Eugene Gligor to 30 years in prison with all but 22 suspended. He will serve five years of supervised probation after his release from prison.
The sentence closes out a cold case that went unsolved for 23 years until forensic genetic genealogy testing linked Gligor to the crime scene inside the Chevy Chase house where the Preers lived.
Killer says, ‘Leslie always was very kind to me’
Gligor had dated Preer’s daughter Lauren when she was a teenager. The two broke up years before the homicide.
A total of seven family members, including Lauren, read victim impact statements during Thursday’s hearing.
Gligor apologized and took responsibility for the murder, claiming he had been drinking alcohol and using cocaine at the time.
“Leslie always was very kind to me,” Gligor told the courtroom.
An autopsy later found that Leslie been strangled and her head was “battered onto the foyer floor.” Graphic photos shown in court during the sentencing hearing showed the bloody scene and pointed to signs of a struggle.
Investigators reexamined the cold case in 2024 using DNA samples found at the family’s home. That led police to identify Gligor as a potential suspect — and DNA collected from a water bottle he threw away helped confirm he was at the crime scene.
One week later, he was taken into custody. Gligor was initially charged with first-degree murder and faced the potential of life in prison.
But prosecutors later said there was no evidence to suggest the homicide was premeditated, which would be required for a first-degree murder conviction.
Gligor pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in May.
The Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office had asked for a 30-year sentence, which is above the sentencing guidelines of 10 to 18 years for second-degree murder.
WTOP’s Dan Ronan contributed to this report.
Get breaking news and daily headlines delivered to your email inbox by signing up here.
© 2025 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.
