Natalie Bollinger Death: 48-Year Plea In Craigslist 'Hitman' Case

BROOMFIELD, CO – The man charged with killing Broomfield's 19-year-old Natalie Bollinger in what he claimed was a Craigslist request to be her "hitman" was sentenced Monday to 48 years in prison, with the possibility of parole.

Joseph Michael Lopez, 23, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the case, avoiding a life sentence in prison. Lopez was charged with first-degree murder in February.

Bollinger's father, Tim Bollinger, also held in Adams County jail for a parole violation, told Denver7 on Dec. 1 he did not want the DA's office to offer Lopez a plea deal.

“There’s no justice in this,” Tim Bollinger told the TV news station. “And for Adams County to have enough evidence to convict him and then make him an offer is a spit in my family’s face.”

Bollinger disappeared from her Broomfield home last Dec. 28 and her body was found, with gunshot wounds, in a field near Thornton a few days later. Although her father announced on Facebook that she had been murdered, an arrest was not announced until February.

Lopez was taken into custody at his pizza delivery job on Feb. 8.

In a police affidavit, Lopez told detectives he came across an online ad in the "Women seeking men" section of Craigslist with the headline "I want to put a hit on myself."

The two exchanged more than 100 texts, and using a fake hitman persona, Lopez agreed to kill her for an unspecified fee.

The affidavit states that Lopez told police he picked her up from her apartment on Dec. 28 and that she said she wanted to be killed "on her knees ... executed from behind."

Bollinger brought a gun with her, the affidavit said. Lopez told police she told him she was having problems with her boyfriend. The boyfriend had reported Bollinger missing and also said his Glock pistol was missing from his home.

Lopez initially told investigators he drove around trying to talk Bollinger out of her plan, and then brought Bollinger back to her home. But cell phone location data showed him at the scene of the shooting, the affidavit said. Lopez then admitted he shot her.

Lopez told investigators Bollinger "knelt down on the ground and that he knelt down along her left side and slightly in front of her." They both said a prayer, he got up, closed his eyes and shot Bollinger, he said. He left with Bollinger's purse and the pistol, the affidavit said.

Bollinger's autopsy report said she had a lethal amount of heroin in her blood, and that she appeared to have a history of heroin and methamphetamine use, Denver 7 reported.

In the five weeks between the discovery of her body and Lopez's arrest, speculation swirled. Shawn Schwartz, a man Bollinger claimed on social media had been stalking her, was arrested by Boulder police for an unrelated charge of resisting arrest. Schwartz was not charged in connection with Bollinger's death.

Born in Westminster, Natalie Bollinger lived in Colorado, Rhode Island and Virginia, according to her obituary. She attended Churchland High School and had recently enrolled in college to become a registered nurse, her family said.

Related: Suspect Arrested In Natalie Bollinger Murder Case

Related: Broomfield Teen Homicide: Alleged Stalker Charged With Cop Assault

Related: Missing Broomfield Teen Was 'Murdered,' Father Says

Related: Broomfield Teen Goes Missing: Police Seek Help

Images via Broomfield Police, Adams County Sheriff's Office

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