Man accused of murdering his girlfriend may have lived with her body for weeks
IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) - Court records say the man accused of killing his girlfriend may have lived with his dead girlfriend's body for more than two weeks.
Idaho Falls police arrested Chris Brandon Foiles on Friday, Jan. 12, after he admitted to killing his girlfriend. He is charged with First Degree Murder for the death of Megan Ashley Stedman.
Court documents say police were notified Friday about a suspicious RV on Wardell Avenue in Idaho Falls, which was similar to an RV police in Bozeman, Montana were looking for.
Idaho Falls police knocked on the door, but there was no answer. They contacted Montana law enforcement to obtain a search warrant for the RV. While waiting for detectives to arrive, Idaho Falls Police detectives set up surveillance on the RV.
Eventually, Foiles left the RV and a detective contacted him. Foiles told the officer, "I am Chris Foiles, I killed my girlfriend, she is in the RV." Officers then found Stedman's body inside at the back of the RV.
He told police they arrived in Idaho Falls on or about Dec. 22, 2023. He said about two weeks ago while parked at the Walmart parking lot on Utah Ave the two of them got into an argument. He said he was afraid she was going to tell the police because there was a no-contact order between them.
"Foiles then admitted he grabbed a kitchen knife and stabbed Megan in the neck," court documents said. Foiles also stated to police he intentionally stabbed Stedman in the chest "to kill her."
He then went to the front of RV and "could hear Megan still moving around in the back of the RV." Foiles said "he heard Megan using an object to hit the back of the RV." He returned to the back of the RV and "stabbed Megan in her upper back area several times until she stopped moving."
Foils appeared in court Tuesday afternoon and was bound over to District Court. His next hearing is scheduled for Jan. 26 at 1 p.m. There he will have a chance to enter a plea in the case.
ORIGINAL STORY: IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) - Bonneville County Prosecuting Attorney Randy Neal has filed a criminal complaint against a 34-year-old Moscow man.
The complaint against Chris Brandon Foiles alleges murder in the first degree related to the death of 34-year-old Megan Ashley Stedman of Spokane, Wash.
Foiles was arrested on Friday, Jan. 12 and has been held in the Bonneville County Jail without bail.
Based on the investigation conducted by Idaho Falls Police detectives, the crime is alleged to have occurred in Bonneville County, Idaho.
Murder in the first degree is punishable in Idaho by up to life in prison, with a mandatory minimum 10 years, or by the death penalty. A determination of whether the State will seek the death penalty will be made by the Prosecuting Attorney after a thorough review of the facts and circumstances of the case.
Foiles is scheduled to appear before a magistrate judge in Idaho Falls for his initial appearance on Jan. 16.
Neal said a defendant does not enter a plea to the charge at the initial appearance, and other proceedings must happen first before the matter is sent to the District Court.
"Although I am committed to openness and transparency, under Idaho law, prosecutors are largely restricted from making out-of-court statements related to criminal cases," Prosecuting Attorney Neal, said. “I urge the public in the strongest terms to refrain from publicizing uninformed theories about the crime as this can promulgate a prejudicial narrative among potential jurors and such stories and posts can also become exhibits in motions to change venue, which denies our community the opportunity to sit in judgment of this case.”
