WAPAKONETA — A woman charged with murder in the 2014 killing of a Uniopolis man pleaded not guilty Monday.
Natosha N. Gilbert, 28, of Lima, also pleaded not guilty to aggravated burglary and intimidation of a witness. She faces up to life in prison. She was being held in lieu of $500,000 bail. She was assigned a trial for Jan. 6 and a pretrial hearing for Nov. 20.
Gilbert is charged in the June 9, 2014, beating death of Charles Hicks, who was killed inside his apartment. He had crushing injuries to the front of his neck, which led to suffocation.
Auglaize County Sheriff Al Solomon said Gilbert and another woman, Sarah A. McPheron, 26, of Wapakoneta, were part of a group that went to Hicks’ home and both knew he was killed.
McPheron is scheduled to be sentenced Jan. 4. She pleaded guilty last week to involuntary manslaughter. She faces up to 11 years in prison but the prosecution has recommended probation. She remains out of jail on bail.
The two women were charged last week after the life sentences with the chance for parole after serving 30 years for three men already convicted of aggravated murder, aggravated burglary and intimidation of a witness.
Those men were James Dinsmore, 29, Aaron Dietrich, 27, and Joseph Furry, 30.
The involvement of the women surfaced during the investigation, Solomon said. He said even if the women did not participate in the actual murder, they still can be charged for their involvement.
.neFileBlock {
margin-bottom: 20px;
}
.neFileBlock p {
margin: 0px 0px 0px 0px;
}
.neFileBlock .neFile {
border-bottom: 1px dotted #aaa;
padding-bottom: 5px;
padding-top: 10px;
}
.neFileBlock .neCaption {
font-size: 85%;
}
