Wife wanted husband ‘out of the picture,' then poisoned him to death, MO cops say
The sentencing of Amy Murray, 47, comes nearly seven years after her husband was found dead in their Iberia home that had caught fire, KRCG reported, citing first responders.
But as local authorities investigated Josh Murray's Dec. 11, 2018, death, they determined he had been killed before the blaze, according to the Lake Expo.
An autopsy revealed the husband was poisoned with antifreeze, and his wife was revealed as a suspect in his death, the publication reported. Investigators said the fire was intentionally started.
McClatchy News reached out to an attorney representing Amy Murray but did not immediately receive a response.
A motive came by the way of Amy Murray's alleged relationship with convicted murderer Eugene Claypool, who was jailed in a prison where she worked as a nurse, KOMU reported.
Claypool had been convicted of a Christmas Day killing of a disabled man who had won $1.7 million in the Missouri Lottery, according to the Associated Press and previous McClatchy News reporting.
Amy Murray was heard in a recorded conversation with Claypool talking about how she wanted a divorce from her husband so she could marry the inmate, according to a court filing obtained by KRCG. She reportedly spoke about wanting her husband dead and 'out of the picture.'
After the house fire, Amy Murray told investigators she returned home from McDonald's with her son and dogs to find their home ablaze, according to KY3 reporting. She said she was unable to get inside the home.
However, a McDonald's sandwich was found on the kitchen counter, investigators said, KY3 reported.
Amy Murray was arrested in February 2019 and charged with murder and arson in her husband's death, KOLR reported.
On June 25, she accepted an Alford plea for charges of second-degree murder, second-degree arson and tampering with physical evidence, court records show.
In an Alford plea, Amy Murray pleads guilty while maintaining her innocence, court records show. The plea allows her for a reduced sentence.
She was sentenced to a 12-year prison sentence, records show.
Josh Murray was a father to his son, Braden, and worked as a supervisor for Perini Construction, according to his obituary.
Iberia is about a 145-mile drive southwest from St. Louis.
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