Patrick Cavanaugh, 60; Convicted in 1984 of Killing Coasters Singer

Patrick Cavanaugh, 60, a former manager of the Coasters who was convicted of killing one of the 1950s group’s singers in Las Vegas, died of natural causes Monday in Ely State Prison, said Fritz Schlottman, a spokesman for the Nevada prison system.

The Coasters were known for such hits as “Searchin’,” “Charlie Brown” and “Yakety Yak.”

Cavanaugh was sentenced to death in 1984 for murdering Nathaniel “Buster” Wilson. He lost repeated appeals to the Nevada Supreme Court, including one a year ago in which he claimed he had had ineffective legal counsel.

Wilson was shot in the head in 1980 and his arms, legs and head were cut off and his fingerprints removed with acid. His body was found dumped in a canyon near Modesto.

Prosecutors said Cavanaugh feared Wilson was going to tell police he was involved in a phony check scheme. Cavanaugh’s wife, a former stripper, was the state’s star witness and linked her husband to Wilson’s slaying.