Carlsbad

Man Who Killed Carlsbad Hiker at 17 Sentenced to 7 Years Behind Bars

Lisa Thorborg, who was stabbed twice in the neck, was found dead on a trail along Hosp Grove Park

Haloa Beaudet, a man Carlsbad police say killed Lisa Thorburg on a hiking trail in 2020.
NBC 7

The man who pleaded guilty to murdering a 68-year-old hiker as a teenager in North County was sentenced on Thursday to 7 years behind bars, according to a San Diego Superior Court spokesperson.

Haloa Beaudet pleaded guilty to a murder count in connection with the fatal stabbing of Lisa Thorborg, who was killed the morning of Nov. 23, 2020 at Hosp Grove Park, when the defendant was 17.

Thorborg, a grandmother whom Carlsbad investigators say was stabbed twice in the neck, was found dead on a hiking trail that runs through the park. Her murder sent shockwaves through the community as authorities went without answers for three weeks.

On Dec. 14, 2020, however, the defendant was arrested after investigators found his DNA on the victim’s shorts. Surveillance footage from the area captured a boy resembling Beaudet running away from the park about 15 minutes after police believe Thorborg was killed.

Surveillance footage and license-plate reader data also showed that the boy's grandmother dropped him off near the park about an hour before the attack.

NBC 7's Dave Summers has more on the suspect's guilty plea, and heard reaction from a close friend of the victim.

After Thorborg’s death, police set up a camera in the park and captured images of Beaudet at the trail on multiple occasions, often barefoot and carrying flip-flops. Two pairs of flip-flops, including one believed to belong to the teen, were found near the crime scene.

The defendant was allegedly contacted by police in early December and ran from officers, who took him into custody, at which point his DNA was taken.

In addition to the 7 years Beaudet has been sentenced to, he was also ordered to pay a restitution of $2,110, a San Diego Superior Court spokesperson said.

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