KINGMAN (AP) – A former Kansas lawman has been found guilty in his wife’s April 2011 death.

Brett Seacat was accused of killing 34-year-old Vashti Seacat, 16 days after she filed for divorce. Her charred body was found next to a melted gas container on the remains of her bed, along with a .44-caliber pistol.

A Kingman County jury on Tuesday found the 37-year-old guilty of first-degree murder, aggravated arson and two counts of aggravated endangering a child.

Prosecutors allege Seacat shot his wife, then set their home on fire to cover it up. Investigators found Vashti Seacat’s body among the charred remains of the Kingman house where the couple lived with their two sons, ages 2 and 4. He escaped the blaze safely with the two boys.

Seacat was a former police instructor at the Kansas Law Enforcement Training Center near Yoder in Reno County. Prior to that, he was a sheriff’s deputy in Sedgwick County.

Sentencing is set for August 5, and prosecutors say they intend to seek a “hard 50” sentence, which means Seacat would have no chance for parole for at least 50 years.