Florida man who told cops his missing wife ‘was in heaven’ after ‘things got out of control’ convicted of murder

Timothy Upthehill and Lori Upthehill (Titusville Police Dept.) and the home where he killed her in 2017 (WESH screenshot)

Timothy Upthegrove and Lori Upthegrove (Titusville Police Dept.) and the home where he killed her in 2017 (WESH screenshot)

A 59-year-old man in Florida will spend the remainder of his life behind bars for killing his wife, beating and stabbing the 51-year-old woman to death inside their home, hiding her body in the woods, and destroying evidence of his crime before later telling authorities that his wife was “in heaven.”

Eighteenth Judicial Circuit Court Judge Steven Henderson on Thursday ordered Timothy A. Upthegrove to serve a sentence of life in a state correctional facility for the 2017 slaying of Lori Upthegrove, authorities announced.

Before being sentenced, a Brevard County jury deliberated for about nine hours before finding Timothy Upthegrove guilty on one count each of first-degree premeditated murder, tampering with evidence, and failure to report a death.

According to court documents reviewed by Law&Crime, Lori Upthegrove’s family and friends, on Dec. 19, 2017, reported her missing to the Titusville Police Department. The following day, authorities found her car at a Days Inn motel in the 3700 block of Cheney Highway. The car had what appeared to be blood spatter on the front, back, doors, and at least one tire. Police also recovered “a significant amount of blood evidence” inside of the vehicle.

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