Prosecutors: Man Stole Wife's $30K Diamond After Murder

A woman whose husband is charged with pushing her to her death off a cliff in Colorado's Rocky Mountain National Park was wearing her wedding ring when she died, but the expensive diamond was missing, a park ranger testified yesterday. Prosecutors say Harold Henthorn—charged with first-degree murder in the Sept. 29, 2012, death of Toni Henthorn, 50—staged his wife's death to look like an accident because he stood to benefit from life insurance policies totaling $4.7 million that she didn't know existed. Ranger Paul Larson said he could not find the diamond in the craggy, secluded area where authorities found her body. Henthorn told investigators he moved his wife's body to flatter terrain so he could tend to her after the fall.

Investigators previously said they suspected Henthorn of removing the diamond from his wife's ring, in part because her hand was not badly injured in the fall. A deputy coroner said he found it odd that Henthorn quickly volunteered information about the diamond when interviewed, saying it was worth $30,000 but "the missing stone did not matter at all at this point." Larson added he and other investigators noted more unusual details from the scene. For example, even though Toni Henthorn's fall was hard and fast enough to break large tree branches, her camera landed almost completely intact just feet from where her husband moved her body, Larson said. And contrary to what Henthorn told dispatchers, a coroner found no evidence Henthorn actually performed CPR on his wife. He couldn't be sure if Toni fell or was pushed. (More Harold Henthorn stories.)