A North Dakota woman is going behind bars for a long time. She killed her boyfriend after learning that he was going to inherit $30 million. In a strange sense of irony, the entire inheritance was phony, and she killed her boyfriend for nothing.
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A court sentenced North Dakota woman Ina Thea Kenoyer to 25 years in prison. They found that she killed her boyfriend by poisoning him with antifreeze. Her boyfriend Steven Edward Riley Jr allegedly threatened to leave her, believing he would soon become filthy rich.
Authorities arrested her for feeding her boyfriend antifreeze in September 2023. It was after Riley attempted to meet with a lawyer to collect a $30 million inheritance. A distant relative allegedly left him the money. However, Riley's son says it was all a scam.
"It was a scam," he said. "He was convinced he had inherited the money and was going to receive it when the supposed lawyer landed. But the supposed lawyer never showed up."
At the time, both the North Dakota woman and her boyfriend believed the money was real. Riley was planning to break up with Kenoya given his new fortune. Instead of splitting, Kenoya decided to kill her boyfriend. The thought of break up enraged her to murder.
North Dakota Woman Arrested
At first, Kenoya believed she was entitled to $30 million as his common law wife. However, she learned that North Dakota doesn't recognize common law marriage. This further pushed her to killing Riley over the money.
The court sentenced her earlier this week. The North Dakota woman and her boyfriend were together for a decade prior to the murder. She changed her plea to guilty.
Authorities found a toxic amount of antifreeze in Riley's system. They also found ethylene glycol in his blood. They believe that she used the ethylene glycol to disguise the antifreeze's taste and hid it in sweet tea.
Judge Richard Hagar accepted a joint sentencing recommendation from both the defense and prosecutors.
Riley's sister, Stephanie Gonzalez said, "You stole more than a human life. You stole a son from his mother and stepfather. You stole a father from five sons, a brother from two sisters, an uncle from 12 nieces and nephews, and a great uncle to eight, and many friends. How does it feel to have taken so much for absolutely nothing?"
