SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A Utah man has admitted to beating his estranged wife to death with a crowbar and pummeling his 13-year-old daughter with the same tool.
The Deseret News reports 55-year-old Walter Eugene Brantzeg of Salt Lake City pleaded guilty to the crimes Thursday as part of a deal with prosecutors that spares him the possibility of the death penalty.
Court documents show Brantzeg was in a custody dispute with his estranged wife, 50-year-old Valerie Sue Brantzeg.
Investigators say Brantzeg kicked in the front door of Valerie Brantzeg’s apartment on Aug. 22, then attacked her and their daughter with a crowbar and pepper spray while they were still in bed, telling the girl, “If you want to be with your mom so bad, be with her.”
Sentencing is scheduled for June 20.
