A man reported Sunday that his girlfriend died by suicide, but investigators found evidence at the scene that was “inconsistent” with his story.
FOX ISLAND, Wash. — Man pleads guilty to second-degree murder His girlfriend dies at home on Fox Island In April last year, Thursday was sentenced to 7.5 years in prison.
After his release, Lars Nelson will remain in community custody for 36 months.
During the sentencing hearing, Judge Alicia Burton called the case a “profound human” tragedy that has had an impact on everyone in the courtroom Thursday.
“No one is leaving this courtroom as a whole,” she said.
Nelson spoke in court before being sentenced. He said he was convinced he did the right thing when the shooting happened, but no longer does so.
Just after 6:30 a.m. on April 20, 2025, Pierce County Sheriff’s deputies responded to a residence in the 800 block of Fox Drive to conduct a death investigation. Deputies found the body of a 27-year-old woman inside an accessory dwelling unit on a property owned by Nelson’s father. Nelson and the victim both lived in the unit, documents state.
When Nelson called 911, he said his girlfriend had committed suicide. Nelson then reportedly told his father, who was inside the main house, that the woman shot herself and that he had a Glock handgun.
“He called and said his girlfriend shot herself,” Pierce County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Deputy Carly Cappetto previously said. “That’s not consistent with suicide.”
While inspecting the unit where the victim died, investigators found a Glock firearm and a live round of 9 mm ammunition on a bed near the victim, documents state. When the victim was moved, several more bullets and shell casings were found on the floor near the bed and underneath the victim. Officials said they observed three gunshot wounds to her head.
“They’ve narrowed it down to the fact that she was not the person who shot her,” Cappetto said. “There’s real scientific evidence.”
Investigators determined the evidence was “inconsistent with Lars Nielsen’s description of her alleged suicide,” the document said.
Officers asked Nelson’s father to show him footage from surveillance cameras around the house and unit, but he refused, documents state.
In the days before the shooting, at least three people, including the woman’s mother, called 911 to report suicidal thoughts and request a welfare check on the woman.
The victim’s parents told officers that she and Nelson were “codependent” and that she had a history of depression and suicidal ideation. The woman’s mother said she spent six hours on the phone with her daughter on Friday, and the woman allegedly said Nelson would help end her pain, documents state. According to the deputy, she said, “It’s possible Lars assisted [her] took her life. “
Nelson was arrested and imprisoned. During his arrest, deputies wrote that he “did not seem surprised nor… [a] A worrying reaction. “
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