by North Forty News Staff | NorthFortyNews.com
Switzer receives four-year sentence for role in rural Weld County death
GREELEY, Colo. – A Weld County man will serve time in prison after pleading guilty to manslaughter for aiding in the 2017 death of his friend near Hereford, Colorado—a case that has stirred local attention due to its unusual circumstances and years-long investigation.
Mark Switzer, 73, was sentenced on May 9 to four years in the Colorado Department of Corrections by Weld County District Court Judge Audrey Galloway. The sentence follows Switzer’s February guilty plea to manslaughter – aiding suicide in the death of 49-year-old Nathan Combs. In exchange for the plea, an original charge of first-degree murder was dismissed.
Combs was discovered dead on May 18, 2017, near a semi-truck parked west of Hereford. Authorities initially believed the incident to be an accident. However, a deeper investigation revealed that Combs had died from a gunshot wound and had asked Switzer to assist in ending his life after increasing his life insurance policy.
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“This was not a momentary lapse in judgment or a mistake,” Deputy District Attorney Katherine Fitzgerald said during the sentencing. “This was a calculated plan and a deliberate action… this behavior won’t be tolerated in our community.”
Switzer was arrested in March 2023, nearly six years after the incident. Prosecutors from the Weld County District Attorney’s Office, including Fitzgerald and Chief Deputy District Attorney Anthony Perea, led the case.
For more information, visit the Weld County District Attorney’s Office.
Attribution: Source – Weld County District Attorney’s Office