BEND, Ore. -- The man suspected in the 2016 murder of a Bend woman has pleaded guilty.
Officials with the Deschutes County District Attorney's Office said Edwin Lara, changed his plea on Monday.
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The former Central Oregon Community College security guard is accused of killing Kaylee Sawyer, 23, in July 2016 and later kidnapping a woman in Salem. Authorities said he then drove to California, where he allegedly shot and injured a man and carjacked a vehicle with a family inside.
Kaylee Sawyer's mother posted on Facebook that Lara agreed to a plea deal to avoid a possible death sentence.
