Publish date: 2024-04-26

Oxygen's Dateline: Unforgettable recently aired an episode titled Into the Night, which chronicles the crimes of community college security guard Edwin Lara and his suppressed desire to become a killer. He was behind the 2016 disappearance and subsequent murder of 23-year-old Kaylee Sawyer, who went missing one night in July after returning home from a party.

Edwin went from being a patrolling guard to fugitive on the run in just a few days, committing a series of crimes that led to a wild manhunt and a chilling confession after his arrest that finally put the Sawyer case together.

Edwin Lara was charged with multiple counts of aggravated assault and was facing the possibility of the death penalty. He pleaded guilty to avoid being sentenced to death and received a life sentence instead. He is currently serving time at the Eastern Oregon Correctional Institution in Pendleton, Oregon.

Edwin Lara first confessed to killing Kaylee Sawyer to his wife

When Kaylee Sawyer was murdered back in 2016, Edwin Lara was working as a part-time security guard at Central Oregon Community College, where he would drive a security patrol vehicle.

In the early morning hours of July 24, he used the same car to kidnap Kaylee. He locked her up in the car's trunk. He then reportedly took her to an isolated part of the campus, where he s*xually assaulted and then murdered her before disposing of the body on the side of the road near 18700 West Highway 126.

When he returned home the next morning, his wife, Isabel Ponce-Lara, a new Bend police officer, noticed something odd about him. Edwin was acting strange and was quieter than usual during the day, but seemed normal by the end of the day. It was only the following day that he would eventually admit to killing Kaylee.

According to reports, Edwin confessed to his wife and made up a story about killing a woman unintentionally after running her over with his patrol vehicle. He then took his wife's 9 mm pistol, left the house, and was on the run, terrorizing areas spanning from Northern California to Northwest Oregon for about 24 hours before he was finally taken into custody.

Edwin Lara went on a crime spree after confessing to his wife about Kaylee Sawyer's murder

Edwin Lara went on a crime spree after confessing to Sawyer's murder. He abducted and carjacked 19-year-old Aundreah Elizabeth Maes, forcing her to go to California, where he shot Jack Levy in the abdomen at a hotel before robbing a second vehicle while a woman and her two grandkids were still inside. He also confessed to killing Kaylee in front of all his hostages.

Lara then forced Aundreah to make a video of him, which was uploaded to Facebook with the caption "Murderer on the loose and kidnapped." He confessed to all of his offenses in it and pleaded with the authorities not to kill him. Even while evading the police, he live-streamed a Facebook video. Ultimately, Edwin called 911 and turned himself in.

When questioned, Edwin acknowledged that he had a constant "desire to kill." Isabel Ponce-Lara, who had already informed authorities of Edwin's confession, also helped them find a blood-stained rock and Kaylee's purse, which included her high heels, a black wallet, a passport, and credit cards, from the couple's shed. They also found dried blood in his car as evidence.

Lara pleaded guilty to avoid the death penalty

With regard to the kidnapping, r*pe, and murder of Kaylee, Edwin Lara was initially charged with four counts of aggravated murder. But in January 2018, he entered a guilty plea to one count of aggravated murder and one count of robbery to avoid the death penalty. As a result, he was given a life sentence without the possibility of parole in Deschutes County Circuit Court.

In addition to his sentence for killing Sawyer, Lara was also given a four-count federal indictment, charging him with one count each of kidnapping and carjacking, and two counts of using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, in relation to the crimes committed in the days after Sawyer’s death.

Before sentencing, Lara pleaded guilty to kidnapping and carjacking charges, and although the standard sentence for those crimes is up to 20 years in prison, in 2019, he was given a life sentence after the judge stated that he is an "extreme danger to the community." The federal sentence marks his second life sentence, both being served concurrently.

Reports state that Edwin Lara is currently serving time at the Eastern Oregon Correctional Institution in Pendleton, Oregon.

Tune in to Dateline: Unforgettable on Oxygen to learn more about the case.

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