Background: News footage of the country wherever Jian Chan's assemblage was recovered successful September 2024 (KKTV). Inset (left): Stephen Chan (El Paso County Sheriff's Office). Inset (right): Jian Chan (GoFundMe).
A Colorado antheral who turned himself successful for shooting his wife and leaving her assemblage by a pond has been sentenced to beingness successful prison.
Stephen Chan, 80, was found guilty by a assemblage of first-degree execution astir 1 twelvemonth aft helium called 911 to study that helium killed his wife, 54-year-old Jian Chan. According to tribunal documents obtained by section CBS presumption KKTV at the clip of the September 2024 crime, Stephen Chan admitted to confronting his woman astir stealing his vegetables and cooking pans arsenic good arsenic accusing her of infidelity. He past bound and gagged her, dragged her into his car, and drove her to a adjacent pond wherever helium changeable her doubly successful the chest.
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Jian Chan's assemblage was recovered by 1 of her neighbors, hours aft 911 received a call connected the greeting of Sept. 1, 2024, from a antheral who said helium wanted to crook himself successful to constabulary for sidesplitting his wife. That antheral was Stephen Chan, who aboriginal arrived astatine a Colorado Springs Police Department part and confessed to murdering his wife.
According to KKTV's reporting connected the tribunal documents, Stephen Chan told investigators helium did not privation an lawyer arsenic helium spoke to police. He told constabulary that helium met his woman 26 years agone successful China. Seventeen years ago, helium began to fishy that she was stealing wealth from him and having extramarital affairs. Stephen Chan told constabulary that helium and his woman stopped speaking to each different 2 years anterior to her death, aft helium confronted her.
Police said that Stephen Chan stated to them that helium began readying his wife's execution erstwhile helium suspected that she was taking vegetables from his plot and stealing his cooking pans. According to the tribunal documents, "He confronted her astir what she did with his cooking pans, astir her boyfriend, astir immoderate things the fellow had said astir her, and astir her boyfriend's address."
The documents stated, "She archetypal denied having a boyfriend, but past became quiescent erstwhile helium brought up the details. Jian asked what Mr. Chan wanted. He told Jian she had to wage a large price."
Stephen Chan past told constabulary that helium waited until Jian Chan was sleeping to ambush her, necktie her up, gag her with a loop from a bathrobe, and resistance her into his car. At immoderate point, helium got his weapon from a harmless successful their location and grabbed a portion of water. Stephen Chan enactment his woman into the backmost spot of his car and drove her to the determination wherever she was yet found.
He changeable her doubly successful the thorax portion she was bound and gagged past near her for dead.
In April, Stephen Chan's defence squad attempted to connection up a plea woody connected 1 manslaughter charge, but it was rejected, and a assemblage proceedings moved forward. Stephen Chan was found guilty by a assemblage of first-degree murder, kidnapping, and battle by strangulation connected Friday.
On Monday, Stephen Chan was sentenced to beingness successful situation without parole, positive 32 years for the battle complaint and six years for kidnapping.