A Magna man has been sentenced to prison for up to 35 years in prison for his girlfriend’s death, after he choked the woman to unconsciousness and delayed getting her treatment while he tried to cover up his involvement in the crime.
Jeffrey Allan Larson, 30, had pleaded guilty to second-degree felony manslaughter (reduced from first-degree felony murder) and obstructing justice, both second-degree felonies.
Third District Judge Vernice Trease on Wednesday sentenced Larson to consecutive prison terms of two to 20 years on the first count and one to 15 years on the second count, according to court documents. But he will get credit for the 18 months he has served in the Salt Lake County jail awaiting prosecution.
The charges stem from the night of Oct. 15, 2016, when Larson was meeting his girlfriend, 24-year-old Nishu Fnu in a Smith’s parking lot in West Valley City. The two had been keeping their relationship a secret from her parents, and they often met at the parking lot, police have said.
At some point that night, police said, Fnu and Larson were arguing, and that developed into a physical fight inside Larson’s car. The two were shoving each other when Fnu put her hands on Larson’s neck, and he responded by choking her and slamming her head into a headrest. Fnu then lost consciousness and started having seizures.
Hours passed as Larson attempted to revive Fnu, and, when that didn’t work, drove her to West View Park, 4100 S. 6000 West, in his car, then returned to Smith’s on foot for Fnu’s car, which he drove to the park, as well, police said.
He moved Fnu to the backseat of her own car, and then called police about 6 a.m. to report a woman who “looked like she needed help.” When police got to Fnu, they took her to the emergency room, where doctors found she had suffered injuries consistent with strangulation, including brain injury due to a lack of oxygen.
Medical care for Fnu was withdrawn on Oct. 29, and she died Nov. 4 at a hospital.
Fnu’s death came had a “ghastly” affect on her mother, Fnu’s father Ram Murti said in a letter to the judge. About four months after Fnu’s death, her mother died of cancer, leaving Murti to care for his son alone and plan both funerals.
Murti described his daughter as “brilliant and hard working,” and said when she immigrated in the U.S. in 2014 “she dreamt about a bright future in this beautiful country.”
“It never came to our minds that something unimaginable, unthinkable and unforgettable will happen and leave me alone to walk in a dark tunnel until death,” he wrote.
Murti asked the judge to punish Larson and prevent him from ever hurting innocent people again.
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