IDAHO FALLS, Idaho — An Idaho woman who said she didn’t know a man had shot a victim four times before she picked him up has pleaded guilty to a felony charge of accessory to first-degree murder.
Kayla Bennett, 22, of Idaho Falls, made the plea last week in 7th District Court related to the death of Kristy Aschliman, 21, of Idaho Falls, on Jan. 19, 2013, KIFI-TV reported Tuesday. Aschliman was shot in four times, the last time in the head, and left for dead on the side of the road near Ammon.
Adan Arroyo, 23, of Blackfoot, received a life sentence in June after pleading guilty to her killing. Arroyo fled the scene of the killing on foot, and Bennett picked him up, police said.
Police later questioned Bennett and she said she didn’t know what Arroyo had done before picking him up. But a witness at Arroyo’s murder trial said the defendant told Bennett about the killing.
The motive for the killing is murky, though witnesses say Arroyo called Aschliman a “rat” before the shooting.
Arroyo’s attorney, Jim Archibald, said that a gun owned by Aschliman went missing and that she gave police the names of two men as suspects, including Arroyo.
Last year, he showed up at Aschliman’s door, and they left in a car. At some point, she jumped from the moving car, but Arroyo chased her down and shot her, court documents say. The gun Arroyo used was the one Aschliman reported stolen, police said.
An autopsy found that Aschliman had methamphetamine in her system, Archibald said.
Bennett is scheduled to be sentenced in March. She faces up to five years in prison, but prosecutors say they plan to ask Bennett to be placed with the Department of Correction for a year and, if she meets certain requirements, put on probation.
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