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IDAHO FALLS – A 42-year-old Spokane, Washington man allegedly admitted to killing a missing woman with ties to Bozeman, Montana, police say. He reportedly lived with her body for three weeks, according to court documents.
Chris Foiles, of Spokane, Washington, was charged with one count of first-degree murder in the death of Megan Stedman, 34, with an enhancement charge for using a deadly weapon in the commission of a felony, police say.
New details
Newly released court documents state that the Idaho Falls Police Department was notified of a "suspicious RV" on the 1000 block of Wardell Avenue.
Officers arrived and saw a 1973 Dodge RV, which Montana law enforcement was looking for in connection to Stedman, a missing, endangered woman out of Bozeman.
Court documents say the vehicle had no license plates or VIN.
According to KHQ, Stedman was originally from Spokane and was the mother of two kids.
Officers knocked on the RV door, but there was no answer.
Montana law enforcement obtained a search warrant for the RV and began traveling to Idaho Falls, according to court documents.
While waiting for the Montana detectives to arrive, Idaho Falls police detectives set up unmarked vehicles to conduct surveillance on the RV.
While watching the RV, a sergeant and a detective from the Idaho Falls police department saw a man, later identified by a Washington driver's license as Foiles, leave the RV.
The sergeant made contact with Foiles, who allegedly said, "I am Chris Foiles. I killed my girlfriend. She is in the RV," according to court documents.
Officers searched the RV and found a body near the back, court documents state.
They detained Foiles and interviewed him at the Idaho Falls police station. According to police reports, Foiles identified the body as Stedman.
Police said he told them that he and Stedman arrived in Idaho Falls around Dec. 22 and parked the RV on the south side of the Walmart on Utah Avenue in Idaho Falls.
Interviews with Stedman's family by KHQ state that Foiles was reportedly Stedman's "estranged boyfriend."
Foiles said that about two weeks before his arrest, he had gotten into an argument with Stedman while parked at Walmart.
He said he was afraid that Stedman was going to contact police because of a no-contact order between the two, so he allegedly "grabbed a kitchen knife and stabbed (Stedman) in the neck," police say.
Foiles then allegedly told police he stabbed Stedman in the chest "with the intent to kill her." He went to the front of the RV but heard Stedman continuing to move around in the back, court documents say.
He said he heard Stedman using an object to hit the back window, so he returned to the back of the RV and allegedly "stabbed (Stedman) in her upper back area several times until she stopped moving," according to court documents
According to this timeline in court documents, Foiles lived in the RV with Stedman's body for three weeks.
During a second search of the RV, officers found credit cards with Stedman's name on them, court documents say. During an exam of the body, officers also found a tattoo similar to the tattoo described in a bulletin issued by Montana authorities looking for Stedman, police say.
Foiles was stoic in court on Tuesday, appearing from the Bonneville County Jail over Zoom in front of Magistrate Judge John Dewey.
When discussing Foiles' bond, he interrupted Dewey, stating, "I don't have an Idaho bond, nor do I intend to go to trial."
Dewey ordered that Foiles continue to be held without bond and submitted an order for him to be represented by a public defender.
A preliminary hearing was scheduled for Foiles on Jan. 26. If convicted, he could face up to life in prison or the death penalty.
Bonneville County prosecutor Randy Neal sent out a news release on Tuesday that urged people to be careful about spreading rumors and theories about ongoing criminal investigations.
"I urge the public in the strongest terms to refrain from publicizing uninformed theories about the crime," said Neal in the release. "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."
The Utah Domestic Violence Coalition operates a confidential statewide, 24-hour domestic abuse hotline at 1-800-897-LINK (5465). Resources are also available online at udvc.org.
