LANCASTER — A man who beat and stabbed six relatives to death and hid their bloody bodies in the basement as he partied and went on a shopping spree pleaded guilty to murder Friday and was sentenced to life in prison.

Jesse D. "Jay" Wise avoided the possibility of execution, prosecutors said, because surviving family members asked them not to seek it.

Prosecutors said Wise, 22, killed his grandmother, two aunts, two cousins and an uncle over a four-day period in April 2006 and left their bodies in the basement while continuing to spend time in the home the family shared in Leola.

Wise has a history of drug abuse, but neither the state nor the defense could suggest a possible motive for the killings.

In court, Wise expressed remorse. At one point, he appeared to be crying as he said he was praying for forgiveness, and said he was not seeking it on his own behalf.

By The Associated Press