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SOUTH SALT LAKE — A man accused of strangling a South Salt Lake woman in her home has pleaded guilty to murder.
Dil Bahadur Magar, 26, also of South Salt Lake, pleaded guilty to the first-degree felony charge as part of a deal with prosecutors earlier this month. In exchange for his plea, a charge of aggravated burglary, a first-degree felony, was dismissed.
Magar faces a possible 15 years to life in prison when he is sentenced on Jan. 17.
Police say Magar strangled Bhoti Subba, 38, in her bed with an electrical cord in July 2015.
Subba's cousin, who said he normally spoke with the woman once or twice a day, requested that police conduct a welfare check on July 6, 2015, after family members had been unable to reach her all weekend. Police found Subba's body in the home, 2860 S. 200 East, which showed no sign of forced entry.
Magar was charged in Subba's death in September 2015.
Related:
Man charged with murder of woman found strangled in her apartment
A South Salt Lake man has been charged in the death of a 38-year-old woman found strangled in her apartment in July.Magar told investigators he knew Subba only through his girlfriend and had never called her on the phone or been inside her apartment. However, investigators found an entry for Subba in Magar's contact list on his phone, according to charging documents. They also noted Magar had deleted his call log from before July 4.
Police also searched Subba's phone and found 18 call records between the woman and Magar from July 1 to July 4, according to the charges. Activity on Subba's phone ceased after 3 a.m. on July 4.
A DNA profile matching Magar was found on Subba's fingernails, pieces of electrical wire located in a bag in the victim's room, and on a soda bottle in the apartment, the charges state. His fingerprints also were found on beer cans in the apartment and on a drinking glass in the woman's bedroom.
