UPDATED: Mario Garcia, convicted for Christie Wilson's murder, dies of COVID infection in prison

This story was updated at 12:45 a.m. Jan. 7, 2021. Mario F. Garcia, who was convicted in January 2007 of first-degree murder in the death of Christie Lynn Wilson, has died in prison. Garcia, 68, died at 12:45 p.m. Dec. 24, according to Terry Thornton, deputy press secretary for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. The cause of death was confirmed as complications from COVID infection, the San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office said in a phone call with the Auburn Journal. Wilson's mother, Debbie Boyd, said the family was at "tremendous peace" following the news of Garcia's death, according to CBS13. Garcia was serving his sentence at the RJ Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego, Thornton said in an email to the Journal. Garcia was admitted into state prison on Jan. 11, 2007, to serve life with the possibility of parole for first-degree murder, a third strike. Thornton confirmed Garcia was also sentenced to a four-year consecutive term for the manufacture, sale and possession of a weapon, a second strike. Wilson was last seen on surveillance video leaving Thunder Valley Casino with Garcia on Oct. 5, 2005. He was convicted of the killing even though the Sacramento woman's body had not been found. Wilson's remains were recovered in August, nearly 15 years after she was last seen, after Placer County Sheriff's detectives and investigators with the District Attorney's Office conducted additional searches using Ground Penetrating Radar technology at Garcia's former residence in Auburn. Wilson's remains were found in an area of interest on the 4 1/2-acre lot and confirmed by the Placer County Morgue to be those of Wilson. Placer County Sheriff's Office Lt. Andrew Scott said after Wilson's remains were found, the Ground Penetrating Radar was a relatively new application. Scott said there was information to guide the investigation but wouldn't discuss "where that information came from." Boyd expressed her gratitude to the Sheriff's Office and District Attorney's Office during the Aug. 24 announcement, stating the family was "so happy to finally be able to close this chapter of torment and be able to move forward with great thanksgiving and tremendous gratitude for the Sheriff's Department, Placer County, the District Attorney's Office who has worked tirelessly on this case. "Today is a day that absolutely reflects some of the greatest level of perseverance in police work that a victim's family could ever ask for," she said. "... I am so happy about today because I know she would've wanted us to find her, and Placer County provided us that gift." Said Placer County Sheriff Devon Bell during the August news conference, "This investigation was a result of collaboration with the District Attorney's Office and our community. What's important for everybody to remember is a search for Christie never stopped. We've been looking since 2005. But we did employ a new piece of technology, coupled with some human intelligence, that led us to the site and enabled us to find her." Bell described detectives and investigators as "tenacious and committed to piecing together a puzzle," adding, "We had leads all over Placer County and into Nevada County. A search was conducted in every plausible location, leading us to today."