AMES, Iowa — A judge has scheduled a January trial for a 22-year-old Iowa drifter charged with killing a top amateur golfer from Spain.
District Judge Bethany Currie ruled Monday that Collin Richards will stand trial Jan. 15 for first-degree murder in the death of Iowa State University student Celia Barquin Arozamena.
This file booking photo provided by the Story County Jail in Nevada, Iowa, shows Collin Richards, who was charged Sept. 17, 2018, with first-degree murder in stabbing of Celia Barquin Arozamena, a golfer at Iowa State University. | Story County (Iowa) Jail via AP
Richards entered a written not guilty plea Monday morning and waived his right to a speedy trial. The filing canceled an in-person arraignment hearing that had been scheduled for later Monday.
Investigators say Richards attacked Barquin on Sept. 17 while she was playing a round at a public course in Ames, near the university campus. Her body was found in a pond on the course riddled with stab wounds.
Richards faces life in prison without the possibility of parole if convicted.
