Charge in Death of Mail-Order Bride

EVERETT, Wash. (AP) â€” A 39-year-old man has been charged with first-degree murder in the death of his mail-order bride, who came from Central Asia to marry him. <br><br>An informant said Indle King Jr.

Thursday, January 4th 2001, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

EVERETT, Wash. (AP) â€” A 39-year-old man has been charged with first-degree murder in the death of his mail-order bride, who came from Central Asia to marry him.

An informant said Indle King Jr. of Mountlake Terrace admitted he used a necktie to strangle Anastasia King, placed her in a dog blanket, then buried her in a shallow grave, authorities said in court papers.

A body found near the Tulalip Indian Reservation was identified Saturday as that of the 20-year-old woman from the former Soviet republic of Kyrgyzstan. The cause of death was still under investigation.

King was being held on $500,000 bail.

His lawyers, Cyrus R. Vance Jr. and Jeffery P. Robinson, insisted he is innocent.

``While it is natural for police to assume that the husband of a missing wife may be a suspect, in this case the facts will show that the assumption is incorrect,'' they said in a statement.

Police questioned the informant last week at the Snohomish County Jail because he was receiving numerous visits from King, authorities said. The informant formerly rented a room in King's home and is a registered sex offender facing a new indecent liberties charge.

The informant led police to Anastasia King's grave, authorities said in court papers obtained by The Herald of Everett. He said King told him he removed Anastasia King's jewelry and clothing and cut off her long, blond ponytail in an attempt to conceal her identity.

Anastasia King was reported missing in September when she didn't return after a three-week visit to her parents in Kyrgyzstan.

Indle King told police he and his wife had argued in the airport in Moscow and she told him she planned to stay in Russia.

Investigators say both fly to the United States on the flight and cleared Customs one minute apart.

He filed for divorce on Aug. 21. According to court documents, he claimed his wife was hiding from him to avoid being served with divorce papers and being deported.

Court documents say Anastasia King claimed she was the victim of domestic violence and had taken steps to obtain a divorce.

The young woman was Indle King's second mail-order bride.

Mountlake Terrace Police Cmdr. Stephen Foster said he had spoken to King's first mail-order bride. She is still in the country, but Foster wouldn't say where she lives.

``This is fairly traumatic to her,'' Foster said.