Man admits to killing Erin Corwin during court testimony
On Thursday afternoon, 27-year-old Christopher Brandon Lee, the man accused of killing 19-year-old Erin Corwin in Twentynine Palms on June 28, 2014, admitted to strangling Corwin and pushing her body down a mineshaft nearly two and a half years ago , according to the High Desert Star.
KESQ and CBS Local 2 is awaiting more information from court officials regarding Thursday’s testimony.
The case was being handled in a San Bernardino courtroom after initially being moved from Joshua Tree.
Erin Corwin remembered at candlelight vigil
The admission to murder came as a surprise Thursday morning, as was Lee’s explanation for why he murdered Corwin. According to court testimony, while being questioned by his lawyer on the stand, Lee said he killed Corwin because she admitted to molesting his 6-year-old daughter.
Lee and Corwin were allegedly having an affair.
According to the Hi-Desert Star, Lee testified the following statement in court on Thursday morning:
“I came up behind her and I put it (the garrote) around her neck,” he said. “I just kept choking her. “I pulled and I pulled,” he said. “I freaked out … I killed her. … I dragged her to the edge of the mineshaft and I pushed her in.”
The molestation allegation came after Lee said his wife, Nichole, bathed their daughter one night, and said she found redness and irritation in their daughter’s private area. Nichole accused Corwin for the incident, and she didn’t know about the affair between Corwin and her husband at the time.
At that point Lee said he became seriously depressed and had thoughts of committing suicide.
On the day of Corwin’s death, Lee testified that he drove her to a mineshaft located about two hours from Twentynine Palms. He said “something clicked” when she told him she wanted to be a part of his life because she loved his daughter.
Gold miner shows mine shaft where Corwin’s body was found
That’s where he claims to have confronted Corwin about the molestation allegation.
He said he asked Corwin, “Did you touch (his daughter)?” She did not respond. “Did you molest my daughter?” he asked her. He said she replied, “Yes, but….”
“It set me off,” Lee told the court. “I just felt so much hate.” Lee said he began strangling Corwin . “I wasn’t going to let anyone hurt my daughter again,” he said.”I looked, I didn’t see any rise and fall of her chest …I didn’t care,” according to court testimony filed by the Hi-Desert Star on Thursday.
Corwin’s body was found in the abandoned mine shaft on August 16, 2014, with a garrote made from rebar and rope still dangling from her neck. Lee was later arrested in his home state of Alaska, where he and his wife returned after he left the Marine Corps.
KESQ and CBS Local 2 will continue to update you on the progress of the case following Thursday’s breaking development.
