Couple to plead guilty to beating elderly man to death

A couple accused of beating an 86-year-old man to death and dumping his body in the desert in 2018 intend to plead guilty to second-degree murder, attorneys announced Tuesday.

The Metropolitan Police Department announced in August that police had connected Patrick Byrom, 41, and Kortny Payne, 45, to the death of William “Bill” Ellis, whose body was found by hikers in Carpenter Canyon near Mount Charleston in September 2018.

The couple had been imprisoned in Colorado since they were arrested in connection with a bank robbery while driving Ellis’ car, two months after his body was found, according to their arrest report.

Police determined that Ellis had hired Payne to work as his caregiver, and that he had $6,000 taken from his bank accounts around the time of his death, the report said.

“After the murder, (Ellis’) body was removed from the home, transported to the Spring Mountains in western Clark County, and dumped in a deliberate attempt to cover up the heinous crimes committed by the duo,” the arrest report said.

Defense attorneys Jess Marchese, who represents Payne, and Peter Christiansen, who represents Byrom, said during a court hearing Tuesday that the couple waived their right to a preliminary hearing and intend to plead guilty when the case moves to District Court.

Both intend to plead guilty to second-degree murder and robbery, with a negotiated sentence of 10 to 25 years in prison, to be served concurrently with their sentence in Colorado, the attorneys said.

Ellis’ body was not identified through DNA until 2021. His body had been found partially decomposed on Sept. 11, 2018, strapped to a dolly and placed in a patch of bushes next to Carpenter Canyon Road, according to the arrest report. Medical examiners determined he had likely been killed about two weeks prior, and he had suffered several broken ribs and a skull fracture.

Payne and Byrom were arrested in Wichita Falls, Texas, in November 2018 after leading police on a 14-mile pursuit. They were wanted in connection with a bank robbery in Pueblo County, Colorado, the report said.

During an interview in May, according to police, Payne admitted to her involvement with robbing and killing Ellis. She said she brought Byrom to Ellis’ home, and he beat Ellis to death with a hammer. Byrom wanted Payne to dispose of the body, she told police, because he was on house arrest in an attempted stolen vehicle case.

Investigators also found text messages between the couple in late August about “accessing someone’s bank account.” Byrom received a text on Aug. 21, 2018, that read “He will sleep real good,” the report said.

Payne and Byrom are set to appear in court again on Thursday.

Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240.