LAWRENCE — DNA from a discarded mask and bloody clothing were used as evidence to convict two men for the kidnapping and torture of a Lawrence family on New Year's Eve in 2003.

Jose Acevedo and Angel Ramos Merced were sentenced to state prison last week for their parts in the crime, which involved tying up two adults and burning them with an iron.

A third defendant, Adalberto Polanco, is still at large.

Lawrence Superior Court Judge Richard Welch sentenced Acevedo to 30 to 40 years in state prison. Merced was sentenced to 25 to 30 years.

A jury deliberated for eight hours following a two-week trial before returning its verdict.

Acevedo and Merced broke into a second-floor apartment on 439 S. Broadway on Dec. 31, 2003. They tortured an adult and teenager for three hours at gunpoint while demanding drugs and money.

They bound the feet of a 36-year-old woman and her boyfriend then threw water on them and scalded them with an iron, leaving burns on their bodies. They also pistol-whipped the boyfriend in the head, enough to leave a pool of blood on the floor.

The woman's 13-year-old daughter had a gun put to her head.

Prosecutors said Acevedo, Merced and Polanco ransacked the apartment, then left, throwing their masks over a fence.

Police used DNA testing to link Merced to one of the masks. They also tracked a ladder with the company name "Pinnacle Properties" and an impounded car from a traffic stop to the suspects.

"There was a lot of good police work here. A lot of forensic work went into this case to link the individuals to the crime," said Lawrence police Chief John Romero. "DNA is really going to be the future of investigations. We're getting better at collecting it and better at bringing these cases to prosecution."

The day after the crime, police had warrants to search the homes of the suspects. They caught Merced after he jumped barefoot out of a second-floor window at Acevedos' home. His DNA was found on clothing in the home that had blood from the male victim.

Acevedo and Merced were convicted of home invasion, armed kidnapping causing serious bodily harm, armed assault in a dwelling, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and assault with a dangerous weapon.

"This was a vicious attack. Certainly the sentence is appropriate given the circumstance of the crime," Romero said.

The case did not go to trial immediately because it took 11/2 years to catch Acevedo and because the victims originally went into hiding.