Austin Louis Rolfe, 33, was sentenced to life in prison on Dec. 9 in Lane County Circuit Court after pleading guilty to murder, second-degree abuse of a corpse and second-degree assault.
Rolfe was accused of killing Heaven Raynell King, 36, of Sweet Home in July.
For murder, he was sentenced to life in prison with a mandatory minimum of 300 months. For abuse of a corpse, he was sentenced to six months in prison with one year of probation, and for second-degree assault, he was sentenced to 70 months in prison with 36 months of probation. He was ordered to pay restitution of $4,871.
He had been scheduled for trial on Jan. 21.
Lane County deputies began investigating the case on July 9 after hikers reported finding King’s body on Forest Road 2212 in the Umpqua National Forest, about 38 miles east of Interstate Five and southeast of Cottage Grove.
When deputies and detectives arrived, the cause of King’s death was not readily apparent nor was her identity, said Lane County Sgt. Carrie Carver. King was identified using her fingerprints.
On July 12, investigators determined the cause of death was strangulation and the manner of death was homicide, Carver said. The Sheriff’s Office learned shortly thereafter that her boyfriend, Rolfe, had been arrested by Springfield Police for an assault that occurred the same day King’s body was located on the Forest Service road. Lane County deputies questioned Rolfe and took him into custody for the murder.