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The 33-year-old Larene Austin had been apprehended for killing her alleged best friend in 2010. Bitter over a relationship ended too soon, Austin had visited the Californian nurse in her home to have her hair weaved when Austin shot her in the back of the head and blamed it on her boyfriend, Louis Bonheur.
After she was apprehended from Belize, Larene Austin was sentenced to life in prison with at least 50 years before parole. She is presently incarcerated at the California Institution for Women in Los Angeles.
The Dateline NBC episode titled The Breakup showcases LaNell Barsock's case as it airs on June 13, 2024, at 10 p.m. EST on NBC exclusively. The official synopsis of the episode reads,
"A nurse is killed; detectives think they have a suspect until new information redirects them."
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How was Larene Austin arrested? Details explored
Episode 42 of Dateline's season 32 brings the harrowing story of LaNell Barsock as she was found murdered in her Palmdale residence home by Los Angeles authorities on June 16, 2010, per Oxygen. Larene Austin had claimed to stumble upon LaNell's dead body on that unfortunate day as she had allegedly come over for a hair-weaving session.
Larene Austin entered the Los Angeles Sheriff's Office covered in blood, claiming that she had slipped over a liquid substance while visiting LaNell, only to find out that it was her blood. LaNell was found lying on the garage floor with her face up and covered by a black plastic bag, per NBC News.
Larene presented the police with a suspect's name, Louis Bonheur, and a break-up letter allegedly signed by LaNell. The letter reportedly mentioned that LaNell would be leaving Bonheur for a Sacramento flight nurse named Ike Umuna. LaNell's close ones confirmed that Bonheur had been a controlling presence in her life, thereby confirming the suspicion.
The investigations into the case led to a shocking turn as Bonheur was found to be innocent, and his alibi checked out. He had been at LaNell's mother's home, Bobbie Barsock, taking a nap when his girlfriend had been murdered.
The evidence from the crime scene pointed to Larene Austin as the officers found a pair of bloody gloves, a bloody fingerprint, and a footprint on a rug - all of which belonged to Austin. She had falsely claimed to be LaNell's childhood friend as she had met her a month before the incident through the personal ads section on Craigslist, per the Los Angeles Times.
Where is Larene Austin now?
Soon after the investigation into LaNell Barsock's murder picked up, Larene fled the country to escape the law enforcement authorities. After the murder case and its details were featured on America’s Most Wanted, the officers received a tip from Belize, where Larene Austin was eventually apprehended.
Austin pleaded not guilty to the charges, which led to her trial in 2015, where she was found guilty of first-degree murder, per The US Sun. The trial took place over 21 days and put her in prison for two terms of 25 years to life on August 26, 2015, per the Antelope Valley Times.
She is presently incarcerated at the California Institution for Women in Los Angeles and will be eligible for parole in February 2032, according to the California Department of Corrections & Rehabilitation.
Catch the latest episode of Dateline NBC episode, The Breakup, as it airs on NBC on Friday.
