More than three decades after the long unsolved cold-blooded murders of a Harlem mother and her daughter with special needs, their convicted killer was sentenced in Manhattan on Thursday to 40 years in prison. The steep term was handed down to Larry Atkinson, 67, following his October conviction at trial on two counts of second-degree murder for fatally strangling Sarah Roberts, 57, and her 25-year-old daughter Sharon inside their Grant Houses apartment on W. 125th St. on Feb. 20, 1994. In furious remarks, state Supreme Court Justice Althea Drysdale said Atkinson had targeted two people deserving of great care and empathy and waited decades — until the day of his sentencing — to show remorse. Larry Atkinson appears in court for sentencing for the murders of Sarah Roberts and her Sharon Thursday, January 29, 2026 in Manhattan, New York, New York. (Barry Williams/ New York Daily News) “The two victims of this case were members of an especially vulnerable population,” Drysdale said, detailing the elder Roberts’ lung problems and her daughter’s special needs, which the judge noted would be diagnosed today as severe autism requiring “around-the-clock” care. “It is clear to this court that the defendant has not taken any responsibility for his actions,” Drysdale later said. “This is the first time that I’ve heard you be somewhat remorseful.” The two women were found dead by Atkinson’s ex-girlfriend, a home health aide, in different bedrooms of the apartment, both with defensive injuries indicating they desperately fought back against their assailant. Sharon was discovered with the tube from her mother’s oxygen tank and leggings wrapped around her neck, jurors heard at trial. Sharon RobertsSharon Roberts NYPD Det. Ryan Glas, who was just 10 when the women were killed, took the case on as his first with the department’s cold case unit, he previously told the Daily News.  Authorities identified Atkinson as a suspect in 2022 after the city Medical Examiner’s office employed new technology that wasn’t available in the 1990s to test DNA samples from the scene, and develop a profile for the Roberts’ killer, which ultimately produced a hit in the state’s database and matched with his DNA. In a victim impact statement Thursday, Sheniqua Simon, Sarah’s granddaughter and Sharon’s niece, said their tight-knit family never left the Grant Houses in all the years the slayings of their matriarch and her beloved daughter went unsolved. “Living in that space has caused ongoing trauma, fear, hyper-vigilance and a deep loss of trust,” she said. She said the decades that had lapsed since their killings hadn’t healed the family’s grief, but instead prolonged it. “They were denied the opportunity to witness generations unfold, to offer love, wisdom and presence,” she said. “Today, I want to be clear: Time does not ease harm. The passage of years does not reduce accountability. Delayed justice still carries weight because the damage did not stop.” Atkinson’s first trial ended in a mistrial because of his severe health issues. When he was convicted at the second in October, he lashed out at members of the jury, threatening to track them down and their families. He had racked up a significant criminal record in the years before —and after — Sarah and Sharon’s killings, including a 2005 assault on an elderly woman whose home he broke into, prosecutors noted Thursday. Requesting the judge impose at least 30 years, Assistant District Attorney Megan Joy underscored the brutality of the Roberts’ murders, saying they were as senseless in nature as they were callous. “These were not easy or painless deaths,” she said. “There was evidence of struggle with both women.” In his statement to the court, Atkinson — whose lawyer said has been cut off by his wife and daughter — said he wished he could undo the harm caused. “I am very, very sorry,” he said. “If I could turn back the hands of time and do something better, I would.” In a press release, Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg thanked the Medical Examiner, Det. Glas and the original case detectives. “We are resolute in our commitment to solving homicides and providing justice to victims and their families, no matter how long it takes,” Bragg said in a statement. “Thanks to the skill of our prosecutors and the dogged work of our partners at OCME and the NYPD, there is finally closure for this horrific crime.” ...read more read less