(RepublicanPress.org) – Boy meets girl, falls in love with girl, and eventually loses girl. Sometimes, they reunite, sometimes not. It’s a timeless story filled with fodder for songs about heartbreak, loss, and sometimes — redemption. Sadly, the tale had a bad ending for a North Dakota man, and local prosecutors recently charged his girlfriend for allegedly killing him for financial reasons.
The horrible story began with the death of 51-year-old Steven Edward Riley Jr in early September at a hospital in Bismarck, North Dakota. On October 30, the Minot Police Department (MPD) posted a statement announcing the arrest of Riley’s girlfriend, Ina Thea Kenoyer, on a Class AA felony murder charge for her role in his death.
Woman accused of poisoning, killing boyfriend hours after he received an inheritance https://t.co/6ySzqCxKuB
— Fox News (@FoxNews) November 1, 2023
The MPD notice advised that they charged the 47-year-old suspect after autopsy results showed that Riley died due to poisoning. Captain Dale Plessas, the head of the department’s investigations unit, said the case was “extremely complex.” He also thanked everyone who provided information so detectives could “piece this together.”
On October 31, local NBC/Fox affiliate KFYR-TV published an article providing additional details regarding the circumstances surrounding Riley’s death as detailed in court documents. The television station reported that Ward County State’s Attorney prosecutors filed a criminal affidavit with the district court alleging that Kenoyer poisoned Riley using antifreeze.
Prosecutors claimed that Kenoyer thought Riley was about to receive a multi-million-dollar inheritance and thought he was about to break up with her. Court documents allege she poisoned him, thinking she would receive a portion of that money due to her status as Riley’s “common-law wife.” The couple reportedly never formally married.
Friends of the couple told investigators that Riley appeared unwell a couple of days before he died and wanted him to see a doctor. However, Kenoyer declined to take him, claiming instead that he had a heat stroke. Some of them also said they heard Kenoyer talking about antifreeze shortly before and after Riley’s death.
Officials are holding Kenoyer on a million-dollar bond at the Ward County Jail. The court scheduled her next hearing in early December.
As a side note, the New York Post reported that North Dakota doesn’t recognize common-law marriages.
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