Sylvester David Carew sentenced to life in prison for granddaughter Zineah Taylor Johnson's murder

CLEARWATER, Fla. (AP) -- A Tampa Bay area man has been sentenced to life in prison for killing his young granddaughter.

As part of a deal with Pinellas County prosecutors, 58-year-old Sylvester David Carew pleaded guilty to murder Friday in order to avoid a possible death sentence.

Authorities say Carew and his girlfriend, Nikki Tyler Gardner-Bradley, brought 4-year-old Zineah Taylor Johnson's lifeless body into a hospital in August 2008. Court records show the girl had sustained more than 100 injuries to her head, neck, torso and legs. Authorities later found several objects covered with duct tape in the Largo apartment where the three had lived.

Carew and Gardner-Bradley blamed each other for the girl's death.

The Tampa Tribune ( http://bit.ly/TW7m6Q ) reports that Gardner-Bradley was also charged with murder but was later found mentally incompetent to stand trial. She remains in custody.

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Information from: The Tampa (Fla.) Tribune, http://www.tampatrib.com