Ina Thea Kenoyer, 48, was convicted of murdering her 51-year-old boyfriend, Steven Riley Jr., who died last year from ethylene glycol poisoning, a substance commonly found in antifreeze.
At the sentencing in Minot, Riley’s sister, Stephanie Gonzalez, expressed her anger toward Kenoyer, calling her punishment lenient. “As many families of victims feel, the punishment should fit the crime,” Gonzalez said. “But lucky for you, the Department of Corrections doesn’t serve antifreeze in your iced tea.”
State District Judge Richard Hagar handed Kenoyer a 25-year sentence, along with 10 years of supervised probation and $3,455 in restitution to Riley’s family. Kenoyer had pleaded guilty in May.
Tragically, the $30 million inheritance that Kenoyer believed Riley was receiving never existed. According to officials, the couple had fallen victim to an online scam, and Riley had not inherited any money.
Riley’s son, Ryan Riley, 21, told The Post that his father became seriously ill after meeting with a supposed estate lawyer on September 3, 2023. He was found unresponsive the following day and was declared dead on September 5.
Kenoyer initially told police that Riley had been drinking heavily and had suffered heat stroke in the days before his death. She also claimed she was entitled to part of the alleged inheritance as his common-law wife, despite North Dakota not recognizing such unions.
Kenoyer’s case is part of a series of similar incidents in the U.S. involving spouses accused of poisoning their partners. In the same month as Riley’s death, poison specialist Dr. Connor Bowman was charged with killing his wife while attempting to cash in a $500,000 life insurance policy.
Similarly, five months earlier, Utah mother Kouri Richins was accused of fatally poisoning her husband with a fentanyl-laced Moscow mule, aiming to profit from a $2 million real estate deal.
