By Scott North
Herald Writer
A convicted sex offender is looking at more than 14 years in prison after pleading guilty Tuesday to the September 2000 murder of a mail-order bride in Mountlake Terrace.
Daniel Kristopher Larson, 21, insisted in his guilty plea that he was “under threats of death and coercion” by Anastasia King’s husband when he strangled the 20-year-old woman at her home.
As part of his plea, Larson has agreed to testify against Indle Gifford King, Jr., 40, who is facing a January trial for first-degree murder.
Larson had faced the same charge, but prosecutors on Tuesday agreed to allow him to plead guilty to the lesser offense of second-degree murder. Under state sentencing guidelines, Larson faces anywhere from slightly more than 14 1/2 years to nearly 23 years in prison. He also faces up to 10 years behind bars after being convicted of indecent liberties for trying to force a 16-year-old girl to have sex in a restroom at the Alderwood Mall in Lynnwood.
Snohomish County prosecutors are withholding their sentencing recommendation until after Larson testifies at Indle King’s trial, said Jim Townsend, the county’s chief criminal deputy prosecutor.
Judge George Bowden scheduled sentencing for Feb. 15.
Anastasia King, a University of Washington student, dropped from sight in late September 2000 after returning from a visit to her parents’ home in her native Kyrgyzstan. Indle King became a suspect after he allegedly lied about traveling with his wife back to Seattle from the former Soviet Union.
Larson, who has a history of convictions for sex crimes, had rented a room in the King home and was one of the people police questioned after the young woman disappeared. On Dec. 28 he led police to a shallow grave north of Marysville and told detectives he’d strangled the young woman with a necktie while the 270-pound Indle King pinned her down.
That’s an allegation Indle King flatly denies.
Larson’s guilty plea came after months of negotiations by his attorneys – public defenders Susan Gaer and John Stellwagen.
Larson had maintained from the outset that he killed Anastasia King because Indle King threatened his life, but that is not a defense to murder, Gaer said.
“He always felt that he was coerced, and this was not his act,” she said.
Anastasia King’s parents were in the courtroom Tuesday, monitoring the proceedings with the assistance of deputy prosecutor Charlie Blackman, who is fluent in Russian. They left the courtroom without speaking with reporters.
The hearing got under way about an hour late after Larson objected to security measures imposed by corrections officers, Gaer said. During Tuesday’s hearing, Larson repeatedly whispered complaints to his lawyers, she said.
Larson has frequently engaged in unusual behavior during the past year. Early on in the case he tried to have Gaer removed from the case, claiming religious convictions forbid him from taking direction from a woman. A judge ruled that was not sufficient legal grounds to dismiss an experienced trial attorney such as Gaer.
Larson then spent about a month acting as his own attorney in the indecent liberties case before asking a judge to reappoint his lawyer.
Larson has prior convictions for first-degree child molestation involving a young boy and for failure to register as a sex offender.
He has a long and troubled history, dating to elementary school when he was placed in mental care facilities and received treatment for violent outbursts, setting fires and delusional fantasies involving robots and monsters, court records show.
Shortly after being charged with Anastasia King’s murder, Larson shaved his head and eyebrows. He has since regrown his hair.
You can call Herald Writer Scott North at 425-339-3431 or send e-mail to north@heraldnet.com.
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