They Bragged About The Video They Had Filmed About It To All Their Classmates | TrueCrimeDocumentary

So, he sits on the sofa. I turn off the TV. And then he just says that. He’s like, I I killed a woman. That’s what he said. Sorry about that, girl. My bad, girl. Sent to Oregon. And I have the one I met. Family members. Kaylee, I know that she’s fine and she will be fine. She’s uh. So far she’s been doing uh what I’ve been told to. I killed that other girl, you know, and I regret it.

I regret killing her. Now, she kept screaming and I was talking to her brother. The car door is open. Kaylee Sawyer was just here. 10 minutes ago she was sitting in the passenger seat  crying after an argument and texting. Now it is empty. Her phone is almost dead. She replies with short messages, then silence.

 She disappears in the middle of the night. No one sees where she goes. No one hears a scream. While her boyfriend is driving through the streets of Bend texting her over and over again, she is already in another car, a campus security vehicle. The doors do not open from the inside. Behind the wheel is a man in uniform. Someone students trust.

 Someone who is supposed to protect them. A few hours later her belongings will be found in his shed, her shoes, her documents, a rock with traces of blood, a lock of hair, and by then he is already on the road. He is fleeing the state, abducting another girl at gunpoint, forcing her to drive, recording a video, calling 911, and identifying himself.

   The chase goes over 100 miles per hour. And right before he is arrested, he says just one thing. He knows where her body is. But what really happened to Kaylee that night only becomes clear after his confession. Guys, let me grab your attention for just a minute. I’m really curious where my audience is watching from, so I’d love to ask you to drop your city in the comments and tell me what time it is for you right  now.

Thanks for your attention. Go ahead and share that below and I’ll keep going. This case takes us to the scenic city of Bend, set along the Deschutes River in Oregon. It centers around Kaylee Sawyer, who had been living with her boyfriend Cameron for several years. Kaylee worked as a dental assistant and was also studying at Central Oregon Community College.

 She was a creative person, really into photography and drawing, and she loved writing poetry. She was also very active and athletic. She enjoyed snowboarding, golfing,  fishing, wakeboarding, and pretty much anything that got her outdoors. Bend offered so many beautiful spots and opportunities for both adventure and photography that it truly felt like the perfect place for Kaylee to live.

Her parents had divorced and remarried when she was still young, but she maintained great relationships with both of them, as well as her stepfather and stepmother. She was also very close with her four brothers. Friends and family described her as one of the happiest people they knew. She was generous, well-liked, always smiling, and had a way of lifting everyone’s mood.

 She spent a lot of  time with friends and genuinely loved being around people. Her mom would say that to Kaylee everyone was a friend, even if  she had just met them. On the evening of July 23rd, 2016, Kaylee was getting ready to celebrate her friend’s bachelorette party. She got dressed and headed downtown Bend, not far from her college, to meet up with everyone.

 After parking her car near her friend’s place, they all went out together to continue the night. Over the next few hours, Kaylee and her friends  moved from one bar to another. Everyone was in high spirits, drinks were flowing, people were dancing, singing, playing games, and just enjoying the celebration. At one point Kaylee started dancing with a man at one of the bars, and one of Cameron’s friends, who was also there, noticed and sent Cameron a message about it.

 Shortly after midnight, now early July 24th, the night was winding down. Everyone had quite a bit to drink, and Kaylee called Cameron to come pick her up. While he was on his way, she texted his friend apologizing for dancing with another guy and for how it might have looked. Not long after that, Cameron arrived and picked her up.

 The argument started almost immediately and continued the entire drive home. They parked outside their apartment complex, and Cameron later said he got out of the car when the argument escalated. Kaylee stayed inside crying, saying she needed some space to calm down. About 10 minutes later, Cameron came back to the car to try and convince her to come inside.

It was already too late for arguments, and if they just went to bed, everything would probably feel better in the morning. But when he reached the car, he saw that the passenger door was wide open and she was gone. In that moment, Kaylee Sawyer had disappeared. Cameron started searching for her and sent several messages.

 Where are you, Kaylee? Please, just come back home to me. I don’t want to play these games. I’m going to stop looking for you, but please, help me. Kaylee replied, “My phone is about to die.” Cameron texted, Please don’t do this to me. I’m sorry I got upset when I picked you up. I drove slowly along College Way, but I didn’t see you, and I don’t know where else to look. Just come back.

 Kaylee replied, “Are you serious? Because this is complete [ __ ] Goodbye.” After that, she turned off her phone and stopped responding completely. Cameron drove over to a friend’s house thinking maybe she had walked there, but she wasn’t there. He kept driving through the streets searching for her, but it led nowhere.

Kaylee’s  mom, Julie, along with her friends were also trying to reach her, but Kaylee didn’t answer. None of them had any idea where she could be. At first,  everyone hoped she had just gone to stay with a friend to calm down, but with every passing hour that seemed less and less likely, and before long the police were called.  Hi.

 Um I’m not sure if this is quite the right number to call. Last night I got home from the bars with my girlfriend, and she got upset at me and ran off. Mhm. And I chased her and wasn’t able to find her, and I still haven’t heard from her. Her phone’s off. I called all her family and they haven’t heard from her, so I’m wondering what do you recommend I do? We can put in a call and we can uh have officers, deputies uh look for.

Okay. Where was she last seen at? Um College Way. In that apartment complex? Yes.  In a specific apartment or In the parking lot. Uh it was like 1:00 in the morning. Yeah, she was mad at me, so I walked inside and told her to come meet me in there when she’s like calmed down. And then I went back there in 10 minutes and she was gone.

 And I called her a few times and she said she was walking on the street. And then I guess she said her phone was about to die, and then she I couldn’t get a hold of her after that. I haven’t heard from her since. Okay. She took off on foot? Yes. What’s her last name? Sawyer. First name? Kaylee. K A Y L E E. And she’s got her phone with her? Uh she did last I saw her, but it’s been dialed in.

 What’s the number? I imagine she would charge Do you know what carrier it is? Um it is Verizon. She has a vehicle that’s parked at her friend’s house, and I’ve been over there and talked to her friend, and she hasn’t heard from either. And the vehicle’s still there? Yep. Any idea where she would go or I don’t know. All the I figured she’d go where her car was, her best friend’s or her mom’s, and I’ve been over to both.

Talked to her dad, and I just haven’t heard anything from anybody known to us. Okay. All right. Well, uh have an officer get in contact with you. If she gets in contact with you, they’ll give you a call back. Okay. We’ll do. All right. Thank you. Thanks. Bye. Yes, I need to have an officer call me. Um my daughter is missing, and she is over 23, but she has um um epilepsy and some medical issues. All right.

 What is your name? My name is Julie. J U L I. Okay. I’m going to have the officer who spoke with her boyfriend earlier give you a call, okay? That would be awesome. Thank you so much.  You’re welcome. Bye-bye. Bye-bye.  Kaylee’s name started spreading quickly across social media, and the news of her disappearance took off, bringing together hundreds of volunteers who joined the search.

Cameron was questioned right away, but detectives had no reason to suspect him. Neither his actions nor his story raised any red flags, so he was cleared very quickly. The friends she had been with that evening were also interviewed, but they couldn’t provide any helpful information. Then the investigation shifted its focus to the man she had been dancing with at the bar, hoping it might lead somewhere, but he was just as shocked by her disappearance.

He said they had only danced for a few minutes before she went back to her group and left shortly after, and he hadn’t seen her again since. Alex Biston, an unusual missing person case has hundreds of Central Oregonians concerned and on the lookout. Bend police are working to find Kaylee Sawyer, and tonight Jennifer Wade spoke with Sawyer’s parents.

 Jen, how long has their daughter been missing?    Kaylee Sawyer was last seen early Sunday morning near her West Bend apartment parking lot walking toward  nearby Central Oregon Community College. Her mother says her daughter is very close to her family, and it’s very unusual for them not to hear from her for 2 days.

 They say they are worried sick and just want to get their Kaylee be She has a four younger brothers who desperately want their big sister home. Missing 23-year-old Kaylee Sawyer has much of Central Oregon on the lookout. Thousands of concerned residents spent the day putting up flyers and sharing their concern on Facebook. And we just contacted everybody and said please get her face out there.

 Everyone was worried, but Kaylee’s mom Julie felt something far deeper than just concern. She said that the moment she heard her daughter was missing and not responding to anyone, something shifted inside her and she had this overwhelming gut feeling that Kaylee was no longer alive. Officers started trying to track the location of her phone and it kept pinging in different parts of the city of Bend, but it was later discovered that it was an old iPhone still linked to Kaylee’s Apple ID.

By Monday morning, Kaylee  still hadn’t shown up for her shift at the dental office and police realized they needed to move faster. She was officially entered into law enforcement databases as a missing person believed to be in danger. As nearly 24 hours passed, a new police officer named Isabel came forward with information that could completely change the direction of the case.

She said her husband had been acting very strange over the past few days and had been saying things that seriously  worried her. Her husband was 31-year-old Edwin Lara and according to Isabel, his unusual behavior started after he came home very late on Sunday night after finishing his shift.

 Um since he often worked long hours as a campus security guard. Like when he works a graveyard like he did on on Saturday night, he starts at like 3:00  p.m. What time like does he work like a 12-hour shift or uh It’s it’s always changing. It’s always changing. It’s always unpredictable. So I  I actually was on the point that I didn’t even know when he was going to be working or not.

Um so what what time is church on Sunday? 9:00 a.m. Okay. Are you guys Is it I mean, are you noticing anything weird at all at this point?  Oh yeah, so he was very quiet like on the way to church. Wasn’t saying much. Is this unusual? Mhm. Um at church he was just very quiet, very withdrawn. Like he would usually like grab my hand or something.

Wasn’t doing that. So when we got out of church, I asked him, “What’s wrong with you?” Like what’s going on? And I don’t know. You know, we’ve been together for a very long time. I know something’s up. I need to Could you get some Kleenex? Yeah. Do you want some? The couple had been dealing with issues in their relationship for quite some time, so Isabel didn’t push him for answers and just assumed he was acting strange because of that.

A few hours later on Sunday morning, Edwin and Isabel went to church together where Edwin played in the church band and afterward they went to watch a movie. But his unusual behavior didn’t stop, it carried over into the next morning as well. comes out of the room and his eyes were all teary. And that’s when I’m like, “What happened? Tell me what happened.

 What What’s wrong?” So he just sits on the sofa. I turn off the TV and then he just says that. He’s like, “I I killed a woman.” That’s what he said. You hit her with the car, that’s an accident. Why? What do you mean you panic? What What do you mean? And what did he say? He just kept saying I panicked and at that point he’s already like he got up and he’s already like going into the room and walking back and forth and I’m not really quite understanding.

But he’s telling me and then I’m like, “So what did you do with the body? What?” And he’s like, “I hit her.” And I’m like, and then I kept asking him, “What does it got to do with you hitting her and now you panic and you hit the body?” So it didn’t make  sense to you.  making sense to me. Edwin also told Isabel that some of Kaylee’s belongings were hidden in the shed and right after that he ran out of the house taking Isabel’s gun with him.

 [snorts]  It wasn’t making any sense to me. But when I saw the stuff, I’m like, “Oh fuck.”  [laughter]  Did he say when this happened? He So he just said  [snorts]  He just tell me the story.  He just Yeah, he just hit the thing. When he was working on Sunday morning, he didn’t give me like a time.

 Officers immediately went to the house and found exactly what Isabel had described. Kaylee’s documents, her shoes, a rock with traces of blood and a strand of hair that likely belonged to her. All of it pointed to something far more serious than a hit-and-run followed by panic. Everything suggested a brutal murder. By that point, Edwin was already on the run and the situation quickly escalated into a multi-state crime  spree.

After abandoning his car near his parents’ house, he spotted a 19-year-old named Andrea sitting in her car in a parking lot. She had just finished a 12-hour shift and was about to head home when Edwin opened the passenger door, pointed a gun at her and ordered her to drive. During the drive, he showed her photos of himself in  his campus security uniform and talked about the news reports mentioning Kaylee.

After 3 hours on the road, Edwin decided to stop at a motel for the night and during check-in he forced Andrea to pretend to be his girlfriend.  Inside the room, he handcuffed her to the bathroom door while he took a shower, then ordered her to undress and get into the shower before him, but Andrea resisted at every step and firmly refused.

After that, he handcuffed her to the bed and told her to take sleeping pills and at that moment an alarm went off on her phone. Thinking quickly, Andrea lied and said she had a sexually transmitted  infection and that the alarm was a reminder to take her medication hoping it would stop him from sexually assaulting her and thankfully it worked.

Edwin, who was becoming more paranoid by the minute, decided to leave the motel at around 1:30 in the morning. They kept driving until about 5:00 a.m. when they stopped near another motel. There, he approached a 73-year-old man by his car and tried to carjack him shooting him in the stomach. He He didn’t get the vehicle, but the man thankfully survived.

After that, Edwin and Andrea made their way on foot to the  nearest gas station where he carjacked a 76-year-old woman. She was in the car with her two young grandchildren and at gunpoint he forced one of the kids to drive before eventually letting them go and continuing on his way. Thankfully, the family was not harmed.

Edwin then ordered Andrea to drive to California where he had family and during the drive he used her phone to record a video. Hi everybody. I just want to say that I apologize for everything I’ve done. Most likely I’m going to get caught. And uh Sorry about that girl. About that girl in Central Oregon and everyone I met, family members, um Andrea, that she’s fine and she will be fine.

 She’s uh So far she’s safe doing uh what I’ve been told to do. I used to kill that other girl, you know, and I regret it. I regret killing her. Now she’s kept screaming and I’m sorry for her. He forced Andrea to post that video on Facebook with the caption “Murderer on the loose.” Edwin also called his family to tell them what had happened and at 6:40 in the morning, he dialed 911 identifying himself and explaining exactly what he was wanted for.

911 emergency reporting. Yes, I This is Edwin Lara and I’m the guy on Interstate Interstate 5. I’m on a high speed. I I know you guys have the chopper on me already. Yeah. And yeah, I just want to say I am going to turn myself in. So, you know, I I am wanted for murder in the state of Oregon. Okay.

 Edwin, where are you at right now? I have no idea. Are you by  yourself or No, I have someone with me. I kidnapped her in Oregon.    She’s innocent. Uh her name is Andrea. I’ll let you I’ll let her give her last name so she can call her family, okay? Okay. Just give me a second. Hello. Yeah, hi.

 What’s your name? Andrea. Andrea, what’s your last name? Maes. M A E S. Okay. Are you hurt at all, Andrea? No. No, okay. Okay. Do you know where you are? Let me talk to Edwin again. But I want to ask you a favor. Uh-huh. So I have asthma. You have asthma, okay. Yeah, so you just tell them not to be so rough on me cuz you know, I I can’t really breathe right now.

Okay. The officers see you and are you able to safely stop? Yeah, I can I can stop but not right now. I just don’t want to stop right here in the middle of the road, you know, putting myself in danger and putting everybody else in danger more in danger, I guess. They know They won’t. They’re They’re aware.

 I’ll let them know. They won’t. But if you can stop safely, they just don’t want you to run. They don’t think you plan to run or anything. Okay. Yeah. Um Edwin, do you have any weapons with you? Yeah, that’s what I was going to say. I do have a gun on me. I am not going to flash the gun so you tell them not to shoot me.

 You know, I don’t want to die. Okay, you stick by your word. I’ll let them know. Yeah, I’m uh yeah, I’m going to let them know. You know, don’t hurt Andrea. You know, she’s a nice girl. You know, don’t hurt her. I’m I’m actually it’s probably my family I have to say bye to them. But once I’m once I’m done calling all my family then I’ll I’ll turn myself in.

A California Highway Patrol officer spotted a car speeding down the highway at a very high rate of speed  and tried to pull it over. But the pursuit quickly escalated reaching speeds of over 100 miles per hour. Eventually, Edwin was stopped and just before being taken into custody,  he recorded a video of himself.

 I know this is being recorded and I just want to say to Keeley’s family, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry for what I did and in time, I will tell them where her body is. After that, he handed the phone back to Andrea and police put him in handcuffs. 19-year-old Andrea was also detained at first, but once it became clear that she was just another innocent victim, she was released.

 Um so Edwin at this point in time, I do want to let you know that the room is being video recorded. It’s also being audio recorded. Once Edwin was taken into custody, he told officers the same story he had told Isabel claiming he had accidentally hit Keeley with his car and then strangled her because she wouldn’t stop screaming. But everyone agreed that story made no logical sense at all.

 Uh finding out stuff about you with your family and those kinds of things. I know you got uh a heart that’s probably pretty heavy and you want to tell some stuff about the the vehicle accident and and that’s why we’re here, okay? Uh we have not been able to find Keeley’s body. Can you please uh help me find her body immediately before we start talking about anything else? Oh.

The reason why I’m asking you that is uh I’ve done this a bunch of times.  to tell you where the body is. Yeah. I do. And you know this man not A man wants to do a map. Can I say the story what happened first? Yeah, as you’re drawing keys or whatever. Whatever you’d like to do. Search. You’re doing good, Edwin.

 You know what? This is not easy. And you might be a little bit scared. We’re going to hear what you have to say. We really really want to. I’m I’m thankful to you. I want to say that right away that you hear what this man has to say and that you’ve got a heart inside of you. And I know because I was in your house. I saw the Bible.

 I know you thumbed through it a lot. I see that you’ve tithed for months consecutively. Um I know you’re you you have God in your heart. Okay? And that’s just not a trick. That’s eternal, right? You know that. And I was going to turn south on College Way on the the freeway. So I was going to turn south on the the not a traffic area there.

And I didn’t see her. She was wearing a What? So I was in a hurry so it was my fault. And I wasn’t expecting anybody, you know, at that time of night so I just turned and and I mean I didn’t hit her that hard. I used bumper with the with the patrol car. You hit her with the front rack. And she fell down. And at first I thought, you know, at first you know, it was all kill her and but I didn’t hit her that hard.

So I got off the car and she was really drunk. And then she looks at me and then she started  screaming. So I panicked and I just grabbed her with the throat. She was kind of heavy, you know. So I just grabbed her and pretty much ripped everything off her like her girl. Feel her in the ditch. And then I went back home and I was like, hey, they got to find her pretty quick so I got to put her get her move her and put her somewhere else.

After that, the detective told him  that the best thing he could do was tell the truth because then he would only have to answer to God and repent for his sins. His voice was calm, almost steady, but there was a clear calculated strategy behind his words. This wasn’t just advice, it was pressure aimed at what likely mattered most to Edwin.

The interrogation room was filled with a heavy tension and every pause felt longer than  it really was. Everyone who knew Edwin said he was deeply religious and his faith was one of the most important things in his life. It shaped how he saw right and wrong, guilt and punishment, sin and redemption. That’s why the detective chose not to focus on facts or evidence, but on Edwin’s inner beliefs, on something you can’t see, yet something that can be more powerful than any argument.

It was a calculated move appealing to his conscience  and his fear of a higher judgment he couldn’t escape. Eventually, Edwin started telling the truth. Not all at once, not suddenly, but like a slow breakdown of an internal barrier. At first, he spoke carefully with pauses as if weighing every word and then more and more openly.

The tension in the room shifted. It was no longer a standoff, but a moment where silence finally gave way to words and with those words, the real picture of what had happened began to come together. So a couple things you need to understand and we’re finally getting to the real problem here. We really are. Is you knew she was never getting out the car the moment you shut that door.

Well, let me finish. You need to let me finish, right? Immediately, you go and give me your purse and your phone. Why didn’t you wasn’t going to get out? She wasn’t going She wasn’t going to survive that encounter, was she? Th- This is where it does not make sense. If your intent isn’t already there to do some kind of harm or some kind of evil to her, some freaking [snorts] evil that’s there, bro. It’s there.

 You just got to face it down, man. You can’t cower away from it. You place that damn thing down right now. If you know the only way if you don’t have intent in her head, your thought is I got to keep that phone away from her cuz she’s going to call for help before anything bad’s even happened. You’ve already made a decision.

 Am I right or am I wrong? Tell me. So I made the decision at that time to silence her. To kill her. I Let’s be real. When you say silence her, you mean kill her, is that correct? And because  When did you make that decision? When she started screaming cuz she had seen my face. But you already grabbed her phone.

 You already kept her away from making a call for help or contacting someone. So you’re already preserving yourself. So I’m thinking it’s before when you asked for the purse, I think you already know in your head I’m going to silence her. I’m going to kill her. She honestly thought that I was going to do something. You were, man.

 Edwin, that’s  the problem. Right now, you were. You absolutely  At first at first I wasn’t. Yes, you were. Keeley stepped out of Cameron’s car and walked off into the night. The air was cool, the streets were half empty and the street lights cut through the darkness in thin yellow streaks. It felt like an ordinary moment.

 Nothing about it seemed dangerous and when Edwin saw her, he started following her in his work vehicle quietly closing the distance in the dark. Whether they spoke or not is unknown, but somehow Keeley ended up in the backseat  and Edwin drove off leaving behind everything familiar. Police and Keeley’s family believe he offered her a ride and she agreed thinking that being with a campus security guard in an official vehicle meant she was safe.

 There was nothing unusual about it. Students leaving clubs or bars were often given rides by campus security and it was seen as a safe, even caring practice.    The uniform, the vehicle, the role itself, all of it created a sense of trust that didn’t raise any suspicion. But the moment Keeley got into that car, she was trapped.

 The space around her suddenly felt closed off and she was in. The doors couldn’t be opened from the inside and she was completely vulnerable, cut off from any chance of escape.    What had looked like a normal ride just seconds earlier turned into a situation with no easy way out. Soon, Edwin began demanding sex from her  and the tone inside the car shifted becoming heavy and suffocating.

When she refused, he strangled her until she lost consciousness. It was a sudden and brutal shift from threats to violence. Then he drove her several miles out of town to a remote, dark place where there were no witnesses and the night felt even heavier. There, he strangled her again and struck her in the head with a rock.

 After that, he raped her. Keeley was still alive when Edwin picked up another rock and hit her again in the head before leaving her there and it’s unclear whether she was still alive at that moment and that uncertainty makes everything even more disturbing. It’s a question that will likely never have a clear answer leaving behind a chilling sense of something unfinished and deeply cruel.

After that, he returned to the campus and switched vehicles trying to erase any trace of what had happened. His actions seemed like an attempt to slip back into normalcy as quickly as possible as if nothing had happened and later, he went back there again trying to hide the body even further, pushing the truth farther out of reach.

After his confession, officers went out to locate the first vehicle he had used before going on the run. Inside, there was a heavy silence, broken only by the sounds of the search, and that’s where they found handwritten notes, fragments of thoughts left behind on paper. And in one of them, it said, “The place where I killed her was parking lot B12.

 I hit her on College Way.” In another one, it said, “This note is just to say that I’m sorry for taking her life.” Later on, near the canyon off Highway 126, Kaylee Sawyer’s body was found. A tragic update to bring to you tonight in the disappearance of Bend resident Kaylee Sawyer. Police now say they found a body, and they believe that to be Sawyer’s body.

 Now, Edwin Lara has been arrested yesterday in connection with this. Lara Edwin Lara is a 31-year-old Redmond resident currently employed at COCC, working as a part-time campus public safety officer. We’ve recently learned that Lara’s wife, Isabel Ponce Lara, as I mentioned, is a Bend police officer, who yesterday morning reported her husband’s potential involvement  Even after his confession, Edwin Lara claimed he was innocent.

 It sounded both contradictory and unsettling at the same time. Like his words were trying to erase what he had already admitted. In the courtroom, it created this constant tension, like the truth was slipping away, shifting shape right in front of everyone. His stance came across as an attempt to distance himself from his own words, to blur their meaning, or cast doubt on what had already been recorded.

The prosecution announced they would be seeking the death penalty for Edwin, a move that underscored just how serious the charges were and the scale of the crime. On the other side, Edwin’s attorneys argued that his rights had been violated during questioning. They claimed he wasn’t given the opportunity to make phone calls while in custody, which in their view called the legality of his statements  into question.

All of this turned the case into a complex standoff, not just over the facts, but over procedure, where even the smallest detail  could shift the entire outcome. To everyone’s disappointment, during a pretrial hearing, the judge threw out his and extensive confession, ruling that it couldn’t be used as evidence.

In that moment, you could feel the frustration and tension in the room, like a key piece of the case had just vanished. For the prosecution, it was a major blow. What could have been their strongest evidence  suddenly lost all legal weight, and now they had to rely on forensic evidence instead, cold and objective, but lacking the emotional impact of a live confession.

Edwin’s defense attorney described his series of crimes as a mystery, and argued that it could only be explained by a genetic degenerative cognitive disorder affecting his brain. It was a clear attempt to shift the focus, moving attention away from his actions and toward possible causes, from responsibility to condition.

The prosecution pushed back hard, insisting there was no doubt about who they were dealing with, a man they described as extremely dangerous, a potential serial killer, and a psychopath. And in that  clash between a medical explanation and a strict legal judgment, the atmosphere  only grew more intense, filled with uncertainty, where every word carried weight, and every decision had consequences.

 and a half after murdering a young woman in Bend, the killer admits to the murder.  And this morning, 32-year-old Edwin Lara pleaded guilty to aggravated murder in the death of 23-year-old Kaylee  Sawyer. This plea deal means he will avoid a possible death sentence.  In January 2018, in order to avoid the death penalty, Edwin changed his position and pleaded guilty to aggravated murder and robbery.

It marked a sharp turn in a case that had been tense and unpredictable for so long. His admission of guilt didn’t come across as remorse. It felt more like a calculated move, a way to escape the harshest possible punishment. In the courtroom, the reaction was restrained, no sense of relief, no real closure, just the understanding that the case was now entering a new phase.

Despite the evidence in Kaylee’s case, the charges of sexual assault were never proven. That left behind a complicated and painful sense of incompleteness, like part of the truth was never fully spoken out loud. Even though Edwin admitted guilt, he did not admit to sexual assault, clearly distancing himself from that part of the accusations.

That stance only added to the tension, caught between what may have happened and what could actually be proven in court. The district attorney spoke with Kaylee’s family and explained that the main goal was to ensure Edwin received a life sentence. It was a difficult conversation, filled with hard choices and moral compromises.

He emphasized that pushing to prove the sexual assault could complicate the trial, drag it out, and even risk the murder conviction. In that situation, the risk was simply too high. The family agreed, reluctantly. It wasn’t a decision made out of conviction, but out of necessity, a choice between knowing the full truth and securing a guaranteed punishment.

They agreed so that Edwin would never walk free again. But even with that decision, there was still a lingering feeling that part of the story was out of their hands now, the part that might never have a final answer. Number one, to have our Kaylee back with us alive, well, pursuing her life. Number two, I wish to have this piece of garbage, the defendant, sentenced to death for what he’s done to my Kaylee.

And number three, I wish the court system and the state of Oregon would just hand him over to me and allow me to administer the death sentence. Kaylee’s mom also spoke today, calling Lara a monster. More family and friends will speak later this afternoon. The judge is expected to sentence him later today or tomorrow.

 delivered the sentence. Edwin Lara was given life in prison without the possibility of parole for the murder of Kaylee Sawyer. At that moment, the courtroom fell into a heavy silence. You could almost feel it physically. It was the end of a long process, filled with pain, testimony, and details that kept pulling everyone back to that tragedy again and again.

The sentence sounded final, clear, uncompromising, leaving no room for hope of anything changing. It meant Edwin would spend the rest of his life behind bars, with his freedom completely taken away and no chance of ever returning to society. For Kaylee’s family, those words carried a dual meaning. On one hand, it was a form of justice,  an official acknowledgement of the magnitude of the crime.

On the other hand, no sentence could ever fill the emptiness left by her loss. Even in that moment, there was no real sense of closure, just the bitter realization that life would never be the same again. Later, he received a second life sentence for the kidnapping of Andrea. That decision highlighted the full extent of what he had done,  and once again reinforced the seriousness of his actions in the eyes of the law.

The second sentence didn’t change the reality of the first. Edwin was already destined  to spend his life in prison, but it added another layer of accountability, another legal  acknowledgement of what had happened. At the same time, it also recognized what Andrea went through, her fear, her fight to survive, and everything she endured.

 testimonies, Lara himself  addressed the court, making an emotional plea for forgiveness. Today, I see your pain.  Today, I see your anger. I don’t have much much to say to you this morning. Only a single prayer is something I’d like to speak to whoever’s willing to listen. After Lara’s speech before the court, Judge Michael Adler called Lara’s actions cold-hearted beyond belief, and added that Lara was fortunate  that a jury would not be sentencing him to death.

 God almighty, what have I done here? I can’t worship God almighty tonight. So, I [snorts] ask you, please, heal the hearts, all these broken hearts of this community. Today, we don’t celebrate the end of this tragedy, because it’s not over for Kaylee’s family. Today is the 548th day we mourn Kaylee’s death, and tomorrow will be day 549. Today, though, we do take solace in knowing that Kaylee’s killer was brought to justice.

 The judge acknowledged Andrea’s extraordinary courage, and thanked Kaylee’s father and stepmother for what he described as one of the hardest letters he had ever had to read in his entire career. The courtroom was silent, filled with tension and restrained emotion as those words were spoken out loud. For a judge who had seen countless difficult and painful cases over the years, calling that letter one of the most tragic meant emphasizing the depth of a loss that simply can’t be measured in words.

He then turned to the family, looking at them with a clear sense of sincerity, and said he was truly sorry. These weren’t just formal words. It felt like a brief moment of humanity within the rigid structure of the courtroom. In his voice, you could hear the understanding that no court decision could ever bring Kaylee back or ease the pain her family would carry for the rest of their lives.

And in that moment, surrounded by legal language and formal procedure, a simple but heavy truth came through. Sometimes justice exists only on paper, while real loss stays forever. I wish I could change everything. But I can’t. Edwin’s  wife, Isabel, filed for divorce and resigned from the police, stating she could no longer continue serving after what her husband had done.

For her, this wasn’t just a legal step. It was a deeply personal break from a past that had suddenly taken on a completely  different, disturbing meaning. The man she had shared her life with turned out to be connected to a crime that shocked an entire community, and that realization became a heavy burden, both personally  and professionally.

In her resignation statement, she wrote, “This decision wasn’t easy for me, but I believe it’s the best step for my future professional growth.” Behind those restrained words, you could feel the tension, the inner struggle, and the effort to hold on to some sense of control over her life. She wasn’t just leaving a job, she was leaving behind a system now tied to pain, shame, and disappointment.

Kaylee’s family filed  a lawsuit against the college, alleging negligent background checks on Edwin and a failure to act on his suspicious behavior. It wasn’t just about accountability, it was also about understanding  how the system allowed something like this to happen. The lawsuit detailed warning signs that, according to the family, had been visible long before the tragedy, but were ignored.

 One female officer had even refused to ride in the same car with him, openly expressing that he frightened her, that his behavior felt unsettling and dangerous. But those warnings, it  seems, were not taken as seriously as they should have been. The lawsuit also pointed out that campus security vehicles closely resembled police cars, and the uniforms looked similar to those worn by Bend police officers.

At first glance, that might seem like an effort to appear professional, but in this case, those details took on a very different meaning. Officers carried pepper spray, wore body armor, used body cameras, handcuffs, and drove vehicles with partitions between  the seats, all elements that created the full illusion of real law enforcement.

 According to the family, that illusion built a sense of trust that  could be exploited, and they believe that trust became one of the factors that made the abuse possible with fatal consequences. In 2022, Kaylee’s family reached a settlement with Central Oregon Community  College for $2 million. It was the result of a long and exhausting process, filled with court hearings, painful memories, and constant returns  to the night that changed their lives forever.

For the family, this wasn’t just legal procedure, it was another attempt to find at least some measure of justice in a story where true relief was no longer possible. But the tragedies didn’t end there. Even after everything they had been through, the pain didn’t go away. Julie’s storage unit was broken into by two individuals during a series of drug-related crimes.

 It was a cold, senseless act, um, with no understanding of what they were taking. Over the course of a year, John Vieira and Emily Pickett systematically stole from many people, leaving behind broken doors, empty shelves, and shattered memories. Kaylee’s family was among the victims, with total losses reaching $30,000. But the most painful loss wasn’t money or belongings.

They took part of Kaylee’s ashes, which Julie kept in a small pendant, a symbol of remembrance she wore close to her heart. John Vieira pleaded guilty to 16 crimes and was sentenced to 40 months in prison, while Emily received just 10 days in jail. For many, those sentences felt unequal, but no punishment could bring back what was lost.

 The most devastating detail came later. John admitted he had thrown the pendant with Kaylee’s ashes into the trash. Without hesitation, without understanding what it meant, it was never found, and with it, another piece the family had held on to in the darkness was gone forever. Kaylee’s memory lives on  through Kaylee’s Law, passed in 2019.

This law came directly from the tragedy, exposing dangerous gaps in the safety system. Now, campus security services and their vehicles must be clearly distinguishable from real law enforcement. That rule exists for a reason, to prevent the kind of deception that once cost a life. Vehicles are not allowed to have emergency lights or partitions between front and back  seats, so no student could ever mistake them for police again.

They must be equipped with GPS and interior cameras that continuously record everything inside, creating a digital trail of every ride. Security personnel are also prohibited from stopping vehicles or conducting searches. Their authority is now clearly limited to prevent any abuse of power. Before being hired, they must undergo national background checks and psychological evaluations, additional safeguards meant to keep dangerous individuals out of positions of control.

The family also created an initiative called KK Readers, KK being Kaylee’s childhood nickname used by those closest to her. It’s a quiet but deeply personal way to keep her presence alive in the world. The program honors her memory by giving children in Head Start programs books by Dr.

 Seuss, especially Oh, the Places You’ll Go. It was her favorite book growing up, a story about possibilities, dreams, and the roads ahead. It once inspired Kaylee to write her own stories and poems, to dream, and to believe in the  future. Kaylee’s murder shook many people, sparking outrage and fear, but it also became a catalyst for change.

The painful consequences of this tragedy  led to important legal decisions that may now protect others. Her story became both a warning and a reminder of just how fragile safety can be. Julie once said about her daughter, “The moment I held her in my arms, I understood what love at first sight really means, and that it’s real.

It’s something you can’t put into words, but it stays with you forever. She will live on in all of our memories and every story we tell about her. She lived a beautiful 23 years, and that’s what I want people to remember, not how she died, but how she lived.”