ROANOKE RAPIDS, N.C. (AP) – A man has avoided a possible death sentence by pleading guilty to killing a Roanoke Rapids restaurant worker.
The Daily Herald of Roanoke Rapids reports (http://bit.ly/MEWunG ) that 24-year-old Joshua Rouse was sentenced to life in prison without parole after pleading guilty to first-degree murder Friday.
Rouse admitted he stabbed his co-worker, 29-year-old Sandy Riedel, to death in June 2009 as she worked to get the Applebee’s Restaurant where she worked ready for inspection.
Authorities say Riedel was trying to help Rouse, and the last call on her cell phone before she died was to Rouse.
