Three men convicted of disposing of a woman’s body in a car in Beauregard Parish and lighting it on fire have each been sentenced to 20 years in prison, but court officials say they may serve much less than that behind bars.

Morgan Douglas, Dixon Fife and Michael Roberts were each sentenced Friday by Judge C. Kerry Anderson to the maximum possible sentence for their charges of obstruction of justice in the investigation into the death of Lexie Doga. The men all pleaded guilty to the charge last month.

During sentencing, Anderson advised the men that they could be granted credit for time served and potentially see their time in prison shortened through credits for good behavior and by completing various educational and rehabilitation programs offered at the prison.

If the men take advantage of all opportunities available to them, they could be released in three to four years, according to some court officials.

Anderson did order the men’s sentences to be served consecutively to any other sentences handed down. Douglas and Roberts are expected to stand trial for a similar charge in Calcasieu Parish next month. Fife has already been sentenced in Calcasieu to 10 years, all suspended, and two years of probation.

All three men were arrested after officials with the State Fire Marshal’s Office discovered the burned body of Doga in a vehicle off of Alston Cemetery Road in DeQuincy on Nov. 20, 2020.

An autopsy performed by the Louisiana Forensic Center in Broussard found that Doga had lethal levels of methamphetamine in her system at the time of her death, which investigators believe occurred at a residence in Calcasieu Parish where she met with the three men.

Authorities testified in court proceedings last month that Doga’s lifeless body and a car she had been using were transported by the three men to the DeQuincy location, and then both were set on fire.

Though the men have not been convicted directly for Doga’s death, Assistant District Attorney Richard Morton said in his sentencing memorandum filed with the Beauregard court that the men’s actions, or lack thereof, still contributed to her passing.

“It is beyond despicable that these three men acted collectively and in concert to provide a lethal amount of methamphetamine to Ms. Doga, and when they discover her apparently deceased, rather than calling 911 or calling for an ambulance or the police or bringing her to the nearest medical facility, instead they put her in a vehicle, purchased gasoline, then burned her and the car in the remote woods of Beauregard Parish. They directly or indirectly caused her death and did nothing to help her in her dying moments,” Morton’s memorandum reads.

Anderson also ordered each of the men to contribute, over time, $25,000 to benefit Doga’s surviving children.