Plea deal would put Sierra Halseth, Aaron Guerrero in prison for 22 years
LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Teen-age lovers accused of killing the girl’s father pleaded guilty on Wednesday, agreeing to a plea deal that would bring each of them 22 years in prison.
Sierra Halseth, 17, and Aaron Guerrero, 19, had previously pleaded not guilty to killing Sierra’s father, 45-year-old Daniel Halseth. They had tried to dismember and burn his body in his northwest valley home, investigators said. His body was found on April 9, 2021, and the teen-agers were arrested four days later in Salt Lake City.
Sentencing is scheduled for July 14. The plea deal is a recommendation, and District Judge Tierra Jones could abide by it or issue a sentence that departs from the terms of the deal. The minimum sentences assigned to the crimes they pleaded guilty to add up to 31 years.
Prosecutors agreed not to seek the death penalty against Guerrero, who was 18 at the time the crime was committed.
Sierra’s mother, Elizabeth Halseth, is a former Nevada State Senator.
The autopsy report for Daniel Halseth indicated his body was “burned from head to toe.”
According to the autopsy report, 42 of the stab and cutting wounds were to the back of the body. Both of Halseth’s lungs were punctured. Another wound cut through a major artery in his neck. There were also wounds found on his right shoulder, right thigh, right wrist, right fingers, left forearm and left hand. The report said one wound appeared to be from a saw.
Investigators tracked purchases by the teens using his credit card, including a saw they bought to cut up the body. They also bought bleach and lighter fluid.
The charges against the teens included conspiracy to commit murder, murder with a deadly weapon, first-degree arson, four counts of fraudulent use of a credit/debit card, conspiracy to commit robbery and robbery with a deadly weapon.