A Colorado couple who concealed a man’s body inside their home for more than a year while secretly collecting his Social Security benefits have both been sentenced to prison, bringing a disturbing case of deception and financial exploitation to a close.
James Agnew, 58, and his wife, Suzanne Agnew, 57, each received five-year prison sentences after admitting they hid the remains of James O’Neill, a man who had been living with them in their Lakewood home, rather than reporting his death to authorities.
But what makes the case particularly shocking is how far the couple went to convince others that O’Neill was still alive.
According to prosecutors, O’Neill died around December 3, 2023, inside the residence on South Ammons Street. Instead of contacting police or emergency services, the Agnews concealed his body using a deflated plastic air mattress secured with tape.
Investigators later learned that Suzanne had been romantically involved with O’Neill for decades, and that he had been living with her and her husband at the time of his death.
According to an arrest affidavit, Suzanne told detectives she initially left O’Neill’s body where she found it because she could not bear to give him up. She allegedly moved to conceal his remains after her pet Chihuahuas began disturbing the body.
For the next 16 months, the couple continued living in the home while maintaining the appearance that O’Neill was alive.
Prosecutors said they sometimes impersonated him during phone calls and email exchanges, misleading people who were trying to reach him. They also accessed his Social Security benefits and used his debit card to make purchases for themselves.
The deception began unraveling in June 2025 when O’Neill’s brother, increasingly concerned about his whereabouts, contacted Lakewood police and requested a welfare check.
When an officer visited the property, a man identifying himself as James claimed he wanted nothing to do with O’Neill’s family.
But there was one major problem.
After reviewing the officer’s body-camera footage, O’Neill’s brother immediately recognized that the man was not his sibling.
When questioned further, the Agnews claimed O’Neill had moved away and insisted they did not know where he was.
Detectives weren’t convinced.
Investigators began examining transactions involving O’Neill’s bank account, eventually uncovering suspicious financial activity that raised further questions about the couple’s story.
On July 3, 2025, police searched the residence and made the discovery O’Neill’s family had feared.
His remains were hidden beneath a deflated air mattress, more than a year and a half after his reported death.
The lengthy concealment complicated investigators’ ability to determine the circumstances of his death. Neither defendant was convicted of killing O’Neill; their criminal cases centered on concealing his remains and exploiting his identity.
Both eventually pleaded guilty to tampering with a deceased human body and identity theft.
James entered his plea in March 2026 and was sentenced to five years in prison the following month. Suzanne pleaded guilty in June and received the same punishment on November 2.
At Suzanne’s sentencing hearing, prosecutors condemned the calculated nature of the deception, arguing that the couple had repeatedly chosen to hide the truth while benefiting financially.
“This was not panic. This was not confusion,” Senior Deputy District Attorney Trevor Moritzky told the court. “This was a long-term course of deception that required repeated, conscious decisions to continue the fraud and maintain the concealment.”
He argued that the couple’s conduct denied O’Neill the dignity of a proper death investigation and robbed his family of the opportunity to grieve.
District Court Judge Meegan Miloud called Suzanne’s actions “morally reprehensible” before imposing two concurrent five-year prison sentences, followed by three years of mandatory parole.
Suzanne, who appeared virtually for the hearing, expressed regret for the suffering she had caused.
“I deeply regret the hurt, damage, and uncertainty that my actions have caused,” she told the court.
But the most emotional moment came when O’Neill’s brother addressed the court, asking that his sibling be remembered for his life rather than the shocking circumstances surrounding the discovery of his remains.
“Jim was not just a body under an air mattress,” he said. “He was a man who loved, who laughed, and whose presence is deeply missed by those who truly cared for him.”
He also described the additional pain caused by not knowing what had happened to his brother for so long.
“She did not just hide his body. She stole our chance to grieve him.”
The Agnews must each serve three years of mandatory parole following their prison sentences. Additional charges were dismissed under their plea agreements.
For O’Neill’s family, the sentencing brings a measure of accountability after a prolonged deception that left them searching for answers while the people sharing his home concealed his death.
And while the couple will now spend years behind bars, the loss and uncertainty endured by O’Neill’s loved ones cannot be undone.
