LAKEWOOD, Colo. — A man who admitted to strangling his girlfriend to death in late 2020 was sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty to a charge of first-degree murder.
Karl Aaron Bemish, 52, was sentenced on Jan. 14 and will not be eligible for parole.
On Dec. 29, 2020, 45-year-old Hilary Engel was reported missing to police by her father after she was last seen dropping her son off at daycare the previous morning. Her body was later discovered in her home, hidden underneath a bed.
Bemish was eventually arrested in Trinidad, Colorado, after he had driven Engel’s car and used her ATM card to get money. In his plea agreement, Bemish admitted that he caused the death of Engel by strangling her.
“We are thankful for the prosecution's work on this case, and that even though we continue to grieve the loss of Hilary, we believe this result was the best available outcome,” Engel’s family said in a statement through the First Judicial District Attorney’s Office.
Those that knew Engel said she cared deeply for others, not only as a nurse, but as a daughter, sister, friend, neighbor, and mother to an 8-year-old surviving son whom she loved greatly.
“This is not a case that my office felt appropriate to negotiate,” said Senior Deputy District Attorney Amanda Lessman told the court. “A plea to Murder One and its coinciding life sentence is appropriate.”
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